Magazine: CNMI is ‘Paradise Lost’

A U.S. feminist magazine has put the Northern Marianas front and center in its latest issue, but it is certainly no reason to rejoice.

On the cover of the spring 2006 issue of Ms. Magazine is the headline in bold red: Sex, Greed & Forced Abortions in “Paradise.”

The eight-page article, including pictures taken of nonresident workers, appears on page 34 with the title “Greed, Sex Slavery, Forced Abortions and Right-Wing Moralists: Paradise Lost.”

The story is based on interviews and observations by an investigative team sent recently by the magazine to Saipan. It sets out to examine the impact of Jack Abramoff’s lobbying efforts on the status of female workers on Saipan.

“In the midst of what could be the largest congressional scandal in history, Ms. sent an investigative team to the Northern Marianas to examine firsthand the experience of these lobbying efforts and congressional inaction on real women’s lives. Plus, we wanted to track down reports of forced abortions on the islands. Could it be that virulent opponents of abortion, such as [U.S. Rep. Tom] DeLay, were contributing to conditions where desperate pregnant workers had no choice but to have an abortion,” read a part of the introduction to the Ms. article.

The article began by relating cases of worker abuses, such as exorbitant recruitment fees, non-payment of wages, and hectic work schedules.

It also provided background information on the Commonwealth’s political status, the lobbying efforts done by Abramoff on behalf of the CNMI government in the 1990s, the $20-million settlement given to garment workers in 2003, and the current decline of the garment industry.

Rebecca Clarren, author of the story, also quoted interviews with former garment workers who had reportedly been forced to get abortions so they could keep their jobs. She also related stories of foreign women recruited to do other jobs, but were forced into prostitution when they arrived on Saipan.

Clarren maintained that the actual situation of guest workers on Saipan were in stark contrast to the “paradise” DeLay and his allies depict the island to be.

Press secretary Charles P. Reyes Jr., who was interviewed by the team behind the story, said he has not read the article. “We do not consider it a priority to comment. It’s really not worth commenting on,” he said.

Richard A. Pierce, a former Saipan Garment Manufacturers Association executive director and a staunch defender of the industry, was sought for comment. He said he would comment later.