Kidnapping—A Global Business

DURING the past decade, a remarkable surge in kidnappings has taken place worldwide. One report says that between 1968 and 1982, nearly a thousand hostages were taken in 73 countries. But in the late 1990’s, an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 people were kidnapped each year.

Kidnapping is a crime that seems to be in fashion among criminals from Russia to the Philippines, with kidnappers ready to grab at anything that moves. On one occasion a baby barely one day old was kidnapped. In Guatemala an 84-year-old woman in a wheelchair was abducted and held captive for two months. In Rio de Janeiro, street thugs are snatching people right off the street, sometimes demanding as little as $100 in ransom.

Not even animals seem to be safe. Years ago some brazen criminals in Thailand kidnapped a six-ton working elephant and demanded a $1,500 ransom. Criminal gangs in Mexico are said to encourage their young members to practice on pets and domestic animals to get adequate experience before they go for the real thing.

In the past, kidnappers targeted principally the rich, but times have changed. A report from Reuters states: “Kidnapping has become a daily occurrence in Guatemala, where people fondly remember the good old days when leftist rebels targetted only a handful of wealthy businessmen. Now rich and poor, young and old, are fair game for kidnap bands.”

High-profile cases are generally given extensive media attention, but by far the majority of kidnappings are settled without publicity. In fact, for a number of reasons, countries “have little incentive to broadcast a kidnapping problem.” The next article will consider a number of such reasons.

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MEXICO

With some 2,000 people a year being kidnapped, kidnapping has been labeled “a cottage industry.”

GREAT BRITAIN

Kidnap insurance at Lloyd’s of London has increased 50 percent yearly since 1990.

RUSSIA

In the Caucasus region of southern Russia alone, the number of those kidnapped rose from 272 in 1996 to 1,500 in 1998.

PHILIPPINES

According to “Asiaweek,” “the Philippines is probably the kidnap center of Asia.” Over 40 organized kidnapping gangs are operating there.

BRAZIL

In one year kidnappers there reportedly raked in $1.2 billion in ransom money.

COLOMBIA

In recent years thousands have been kidnapped annually. In May 1999, rebels kidnapped a hundred parishioners during a Mass.

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Kidnapping—Commercialized Terror

“KIDNAP is not like crime against property. It is devious, cruel and indifferent treatment of the most fundamental human group, the family,” says Mark Bles, in his book The Kidnap Business. A kidnapping causes emotional turmoil to family members. Minute by minute and hour by hour, they are tossed between hope and despair as they struggle with sentiments of guilt, hate, and helplessness. The nightmare may go on for days, weeks, months or, sometimes, even years.

In their relentless quest for money, kidnappers capitalize on family feelings. A kidnapping band forced their victim to write the following in an open letter to the press: “I ask the Press to publish this everywhere so that if I do not come back the fault will be with my kidnappers but also with my family who prove they prefer money to me.” Italian kidnappers have applied pressure for ransom money by cutting off body parts and sending them to relatives or TV stations. A Mexican kidnapper even tortured his victims while negotiating over the phone with their family.

Some kidnappers, on the other hand, attempt to curry favor with their victims. For example, in the Philippines a kidnapped businessman was kept in a luxurious hotel in Manila, where his captors gave him liquor and entertained him with prostitutes until the ransom was paid. Most victims, however, are locked up with little concern shown for their physical or hygienic needs. Many are brutally mistreated. In any case, the victim must always suffer the horror of wondering what is going to happen to him.

Coping With the Trauma

Even after victims are released, they may have lingering emotional scars. A Swedish nurse who was kidnapped in Somalia expressed this opinion: “One thing is more important than anything else. You have to talk to friends and relatives and get professional help if you need it.”

Therapists have developed a method to help such victims. In several short sessions, the victims analyze their experiences with professional assistance before meeting with their families and getting back to a normal life. “Therapy given shortly after the event reduces the risk of permanent damage,” says Rigmor Gillberg, a Red Cross crisis therapy expert.

Additional Consequences

Victims and their families are not the only ones touched by kidnappings. Fear of kidnapping can halt tourism and slow down investments; it also creates a sense of insecurity in society. In just a few months in 1997, six international companies moved out of the Philippines because of the kidnapping threat. A Filipino woman working for a group called Citizens Against Crime exclaimed: “We are living a nightmare.”

An article in The Arizona Republic says: “Among Mexican executives, the fear of kidnap is verging on hysteria, and justifiably so.” The Brazilian magazine Veja reports that kidnappers and robbers have replaced monsters in the nightmares of Brazilian children. In Taiwan, kidnap prevention is taught at school, and in the United States, security cameras have been installed in preschools to prevent kidnapping.

A Boom for Security Consultants

The increase in kidnappings and the delicate issues surrounding them have created a boom for private security firms. In the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, there are more than 500 such firms, accounting for $1.8 billion in revenue.

A growing number of international security firms teach kidnap prevention, publish reports on hazardous areas, and negotiate ransoms. They counsel families and companies, teaching them the strategies of kidnappers and helping them to cope psychologically. Some firms even try to catch kidnappers and get the ransom money back after the hostage is released. Their services are not free, though.

In spite of such efforts, kidnappings are on the rise in many lands. Commenting on the situation in Latin America, Richard Johnson, vice president of Seitlin & Company, says: “All expectations are that the level of kidnappings will increase.”

Reasons for the Surge

Experts suggest a host of reasons for the recent surge. The desperate economic situation in some areas is one. A relief worker in the town of Nal’chik, Russia, said: “The best way to get money is this famous tool, kidnapping.” In some former Soviet republics, kidnappings are said to be used to finance the private armies of local warlords.

More people are traveling for business or as tourists than ever before, thus opening up new fields for kidnappers in search of prey. The number of foreigners kidnapped has doubled in five years. Between 1991 and 1997, tourists were abducted in some 26 lands.

Where do all these kidnappers come from? Some military conflicts are cooling off, leaving former soldiers unemployed, with empty pockets. These people have all the necessary skills to take up this lucrative business.

Similarly, the use of more efficient measures against bank robbery and crackdowns on drug dealing have caused criminals to take up kidnapping as a substitute source of income. Mike Ackerman, an expert on kidnappings, explained: “As we make crimes against property more difficult in all societies, it forces crimes against people.” Publicizing high ransom payments could also induce potential kidnappers.

Motives Not Always the Same

Most kidnappers want money and nothing but money. Ransom demands vary from just a handful of dollars to the record $60 million ransom paid for a Hong Kong property tycoon who was never released in spite of the payment.

On the other hand, some kidnappers have used their victims to bargain for publicity, food, medicine, radios, and cars as well as new schools, roads, and hospitals. One executive kidnapped in Asia was released after the kidnappers were given basketball uniforms and basketballs. Certain groups also use kidnappings to scare and intimidate foreign investors and tourists, with the aim of halting the exploitation of land and natural resources.

So there is no shortage of motives, no shortage of means, no shortage of potential kidnappers or victims. Are solutions equally plentiful? What are some of them, and can they really solve the problem? Before answering such questions, let us examine some deeper, underlying causes of the boom in the kidnapping business.

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If You Are Kidnapped

Those who have studied the subject offer the following suggestions to people who may be kidnapped.

• Be cooperative; avoid obstinate behavior. Antagonistic hostages are more often subjected to harsh treatment, and they run a greater risk of being killed or singled out for punishment.

• Do not panic. Keep in mind that most victims survive the kidnapping.

• Devise a system to keep track of time.

• Try to establish some sort of daily routine.

• Exercise, even though your opportunities to move may be limited.

• Be observant; try to memorize details, sounds, and smells. Learn details about your kidnappers.

• Engage in small talk if possible and try to establish contact. If the kidnappers see you as an individual, they will be less likely to harm or kill you.

• Make them aware of your needs in a polite manner.

• Never try to negotiate your own ransom.

• If you find yourself in the middle of a rescue attempt, drop to the floor and wait passively as events unfold.

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Kidnap Insurance—A Controversial Issue

A boom industry connected with the increase in kidnappings is insurance. Lloyd’s of London has had a 50 percent yearly increase in kidnap insurance during the 1990’s. More and more companies are offering such insurance. The insurance covers the assistance of a kidnap negotiator, payment of a ransom, and sometimes professional efforts to get the ransom back. However, the insurance issue is very controversial.

Opposers to kidnap insurance claim that it commercializes the crime and that it is immoral to make money off kidnapping. They also say that an insured person might be careless about his own security and that the insurance will facilitate the kidnappers’ task of extorting money, thus encouraging this criminal activity. Some even fear that the availability of insurance will encourage people to arrange their own kidnapping to get the insurance money. Kidnap insurance is outlawed in Colombia and Italy.

Supporters of kidnap insurance point out that like any other insurance, it makes many pay for the losses of a few. They reason that insurance creates a measure of security, since it enables insured families and companies to afford the help of qualified professionals, who can ease tension, negotiate lower ransoms, and make it easier to catch the kidnappers.

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The Stockholm Syndrome

In 1974 the kidnapping of Patty Hearst, daughter of the newspaper billionaire Randolph A. Hearst, took a surprising turn when she sided with her kidnappers and took part in armed robbery with the group. In another case a kidnapped Spanish football player forgave his kidnappers and wished them well.

In the early 1970’s, this phenomenon was named the Stockholm Syndrome, after a 1973 hostage drama at a bank in Stockholm, Sweden. On that occasion some of the hostages developed a particular friendship with their captors. Such interaction has served as a protection to the kidnapped, as the book Criminal Behavior explains: “The more the victim and the captor get to know one another, the more they tend to like one another. This phenomenon indicates that after a period of time the offender is less likely to harm the hostage.”

An English victim in Chechnya who was raped said: “I believe that when the guard came to know us as individuals he realized it was wrong to rape me. The raping stopped and he apologized.”

Kidnapping—Its Underlying Causes

KIDNAPPINGS have become a modern plague. But so have murder, rape, theft, child molestation, and even genocide. Why has life become so dangerous that people often fear to venture from their homes at night?

The underlying causes of this epidemic of criminal activity, including kidnappings, are connected with deeply rooted flaws within human society. Did you realize that nearly 2,000 years ago, the Bible foretold these dangerous times? Please consider what was foretold at 2 Timothy 3:2-5.

“Men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, self-assuming, haughty, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, disloyal, having no natural affection, not open to any agreement, slanderers, without self-control, fierce, without love of goodness, betrayers, headstrong, puffed up with pride, lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God, having a form of godly devotion but proving false to its power.”

You probably agree that these words recorded long ago describe the situation today perfectly. In our lifetime festering flaws in human society have erupted with a vengeance. Significantly, the above description of lamentable human conduct is introduced in the Bible with the words: “In the last days critical times hard to deal with will be here.” (2 Timothy 3:1) Let us consider just three of society’s major flaws that have contributed to the epidemic of kidnappings.

Problems With Law Enforcement

“Because sentence against a bad work has not been executed speedily, that is why the heart of the sons of men has become fully set in them to do bad.”—Ecclesiastes 8:11.

Many police forces lack resources to cope with the epidemic of criminal activity. So in many countries, kidnapping is a crime that pays. In 1996, as few as 2 percent of all Colombian kidnappers were prosecuted. In Mexico, at least $200 million was paid in ransom money in 1997. Some kidnappers in the Philippines have even accepted checks for ransom payment.

In addition, corruption within law enforcement agencies sometimes thwarts efficient crime fighting. Heads of elite antikidnapping squads in Mexico, Colombia, and former Soviet republics have themselves been accused of kidnapping. In the magazine Asiaweek, the president of the Philippine Senate, Blas Ople, says that official figures show that 52 percent of the kidnappings in the Philippines involve active or retired police or military men. A notorious Mexican kidnapper was said to have been shielded by “a wall of official protection cemented together with bribes to municipal, state and federal police officers and prosecutors.”

Poverty and Social Injustice

“I myself returned that I might see all the acts of oppression that are being done under the sun, and, look! the tears of those being oppressed, but they had no comforter; and on the side of their oppressors there was power.”—Ecclesiastes 4:1.

Many people today are in desperate economic and social situations, and they are often the ones who commit kidnappings. So in a world where the gap between rich and poor is constantly widening and where the possibilities to earn money in an honest way are often scarce, kidnapping will continue to be a temptation. As long as there is oppression, kidnapping will be a means to strike back and to draw attention to what is considered an intolerable situation.

Greed and Lack of Love

“The love of money is a root of all sorts of injurious things.” (1 Timothy 6:10) “Because of the increasing of lawlessness the love of the greater number will cool off.”—Matthew 24:12.

Throughout history the love of money has caused people to do heinous things. And perhaps no other crime commercializes human anguish, grief, and despair to the same extent as kidnapping. For many it is greed—the love of money—that pushes them to brutalize and torture a stranger and put his family through a cruel ordeal for weeks, months, and sometimes years.

Clearly, something is terribly wrong with a society that stresses money and tramples human values underfoot. Without a doubt, this situation provides a breeding ground for all kinds of criminal activity, including kidnapping.

Does this mean that we are in what the Bible calls “the last days”? If so, what will this mean for the earth and for us? Is there a solution to the terrible problems facing humankind, including kidnapping?

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Nothing New

The Mosaic Law meted out capital punishment for kidnappers as far back as the 15th century B.C.E. (Deuteronomy 24:7) Julius Caesar was kidnapped for ransom in the first century B.C.E., as was Richard I, the Lionhearted, king of England, in the 12th century C.E. The highest ransom ever paid was the 24 tons of gold and silver that the Incas gave to the Spanish conqueror Francisco Pizarro to obtain the release of their captured chief Atahuallpa in 1533. The conquistadores nevertheless strangled him to death.

Kidnapping—Is There a Solution?

“THE abductions have reached a point intolerable to the whole nation, and the entire society must fight this evil,” exclaimed the prime minister of Chechnya when promising to eradicate the scourge from his kidnap-plagued republic in Russia.

Eradicate kidnappings? The goal is laudable, but the question is, How?

Efforts Being Made

Colombian authorities have appointed 2,000 secret agents, 24 public prosecutors, and even a special antikidnap coordinator just to fight kidnappings. In Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, a public march protesting the city’s numerous kidnappings drew about 100,000 marchers. In Brazil and Colombia, paramilitary groups have counterattacked by kidnapping relatives of kidnappers. And some Filipinos have resorted to vigilante justice—they have lynched kidnappers!

Guatemalan authorities introduced the death penalty for kidnappers, and the president mobilized the army to halt the kidnapping epidemic. In Italy the government adopted strong measures to prevent kidnappings, by making ransom payments illegal and seizing money and property to stop relatives from paying. Italian officials boast that these measures have contributed to a decrease in kidnappings. Critics, however, suggest that as a result, families try to resolve cases in secrecy and that this reduces the official number of kidnappings. Private security consultants estimate that the number of kidnappings in Italy has actually doubled since the 1980’s.

Many Suggestions—Few Solutions

For many families of kidnap victims, only one solution seems viable—to bail out their loved ones as quickly as possible. But experts warn that if the ransom is high and is paid too quickly, kidnappers might consider the family an easy target and come back a second time. Or they might ask for a second ransom before releasing the victim.

Some families have paid high ransoms only to find that the victim was already dead. So experts say that one should never pay a ransom or engage in negotiations before proof is obtained that the victim is alive. Such proof could be in the form of the answer to a question that only the victim would be able to provide. Some families ask for a photo of the victim holding a recent newspaper.

What about rescue actions? They are often associated with great risk. “Seventy-nine percent of all hostages are killed during rescue attempts in Latin America,” says Brian Jenkins, an expert on kidnappings. Sometimes, however, rescue attempts are successful.

Not surprisingly, many solutions focus on kidnap prevention. It is not only government authorities that are engaged in attempts to prevent kidnappings. Newspapers teach people how to avoid being kidnapped, how to throw themselves from a moving car, and how to outwit kidnappers psychologically. Martial arts centers give courses in defense against kidnapping. Companies sell $15,000 ultra microtransmitters, which can be planted in children’s teeth to help police track the children down if they are kidnapped. For those who can afford them, car manufacturers produce “kidnap-proof” cars with tear-gas dispensers, gun ports, bulletproof windows, slash-proof tires, and oil slick dispensers.

Some of the wealthy see bodyguards as a solution. However, concerning the situation in Mexico, security expert Francisco Gomez Lerma says: ‘Bodyguards are no help because they attract attention and may be in cahoots with kidnappers.’

The kidnapping problem is so complex and its roots are so deep that nothing mankind can do seems adequate to eliminate it. Is there, then, no real solution?

A Solution Available

This magazine has repeatedly pointed to the only real solution to all such problems facing humans. That solution is the one to which God’s Son, Jesus Christ, pointed when he taught his followers to pray: “Let your kingdom come. Let your will take place, as in heaven, also upon earth.”—Matthew 6:10.

Clearly, we need a righteous world government to manage the affairs of earth’s vast diversity of people—yes, the Kingdom of God that Jesus spoke about. Since humans have been unable to establish such a government, we are wise to look to our Creator, Jehovah God. His Word, the Bible, says that he purposed to do this very thing.—Psalm 83:18.

The prophet Daniel recorded Jehovah’s purpose, writing: “In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be brought to ruin. . . . It will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, and it itself will stand to times indefinite.” (Daniel 2:44) The Bible describes how this government of God would take progressive steps to eradicate all criminal activity, including kidnapping.

Proper Education Essential

No doubt you will agree that instilling a sound set of values in people is essential to solving the problem of kidnapping. Consider, for example, the effect it would have on human society if all heeded the following admonition in the Bible: “Let your manner of life be free of the love of money, while you are content with the present things.” (Hebrews 13:5) “Do not you people be owing anybody a single thing, except to love one another.”—Romans 13:8.

You can get a glimpse of what life could be like by considering the educational program being conducted by Jehovah’s Witnesses in over 230 lands throughout the earth. This program has had a wholesome effect on many people who were formerly greedy or were dangerous criminals. One former kidnapper said: “In time, I realized that to please God I needed to strip off my old personality and put on a new one—one that was meek and similar to that of Christ Jesus.”

Yet, even a fine educational program will not reform all criminals, perhaps not even the majority. What will happen to those refusing to change?

Removal of Wrongdoers

Willful wrongdoers will not be permitted to be subjects of God’s Kingdom. The Bible says: “Do you not know that unrighteous persons will not inherit God’s kingdom? Do not be misled. Neither fornicators, . . . nor greedy persons, . . . nor extortioners will inherit God’s kingdom.” (1 Corinthians 6:9, 10) “The upright are the ones that will reside in the earth . . . As regards the wicked, they will be cut off from the very earth.”—Proverbs 2:21, 22.

According to God’s Law in ancient times, an unrepentant kidnapper was to be put to death. (Deuteronomy 24:7) Greedy persons, such as kidnappers, will not have any place in the Kingdom of God. Today’s criminals might elude human justice, but they will not be able to elude God’s justice. Any wrongdoers will have to change their ways if they are to live under Jehovah’s righteous Kingdom rule.

Obviously, if conditions that breed criminal activity remain, so will the crime. Yet, God’s Kingdom will not allow that, for the Bible promises: “The kingdom itself . . . will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms,” including all people who practice wrongdoing. This Bible prophecy continues by saying that God’s Kingdom will stand to times indefinite. (Daniel 2:44) Just imagine the changes that will occur!

A New World of Righteousness

Consider another Bible prophecy. It is one that beautifully describes the future in these words: “They will certainly build houses and have occupancy; and they will certainly plant vineyards and eat their fruitage. They will not build and someone else have occupancy; they will not plant and someone else do the eating. For like the days of a tree will the days of my people be; and the work of their own hands my chosen ones will use to the full.”—Isaiah 65:21, 22.

The Kingdom of God will transform the entire planet. All alive will be able to enjoy life to the full, developing their natural abilities by engaging in satisfying work and wholesome recreation. Conditions worldwide will be such that no one will ever even think of kidnapping his neighbor. The sense of security will be total. (Micah 4:4) Thus, God’s Kingdom will have reduced kidnapping from a present-day global threat to a chapter of history that no one will even think of anymore.—Isaiah 65:17.