Fog of War: No, Pfizer Is Not Supplying Ghadafi's Troops With Viagra for Mass Rapes
Pfizer (PFE) is not supplying Moammar Gadhafi's troops with Viagra as " a tool of massive rape," as hinted at by CNN and Luis Moreno-Ocampo, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, yesterday. In fact, Pfizer hasn't supplied Libya with any products since February, the company tells BNET:
Pfizer is appalled by the allegations of abuse in Libya. We condemn any misuse of our medicines. Pfizer stopped shipping all products to Libya in February, when sanctions were implemented by the international community. Our thoughts remain with the people of Libya, and for a peaceful resolution to this conflict.The jury is still out on whether rape is being used as a weapon of war in Libya -- Moreno-Ocampo is still investigating. In the meantime, this how the Viagra-rape meme got started:
- March 28: Al-Jazeera reports that bottles of Viagra have been found on dead government soldiers. The accusation comes from one rebel doctor in Libya.
- April 28: Human Rights Watch interviews the same doctor and determines he has no evidence to back his claims, although there is no evidence to refute them either.
- April 29: Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, repeats the claim to the U.N. security council but offers no evidence. Foreign affairs specialists express skepticism.
- April 29: U.S. military and intelligence officials tell NBC there is "no evidence" for the use of Viagra as a rape tool in Libya.
- May 3: Al-Jazeera airs a more complete report on rapes by Ghadafi's troops, this time with better sourcing. A rebel fighter is shown on camera making the claim. Reporter Sue Turton shows a bag full of Viagra and Cialis and says she has heard the claim "from fighters, doctors, army officers and civilians that they've been finding Viagra on Ghadafi's fighters and that they've been telling them they were ordered to rape."
(Video below.) - May 6: The Asia Times notes that the Viagra bottles, supposedly recovered from burned-out tanks and the bodies of Ghadafi soldiers, look as good as new.
- May 18: The ICC's Moreno-Ocampo tells CNN he will investigate the rapes, with a statement suggesting he has already made up his mind:
"There are rapes. ... There's some information with Viagra. So, it's like a machete," he said. "It's new. Viagra is a tool of massive rape."In sum, we have some rebel sources claiming Viagra is being used in Ghadafi's rape campaign on the one hand, and on the other Human Rights Watch, U.S. defense and intelligence officials denying the same. Everyone else is just repeating what they saw on Al-Jazeera.
Related:
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