(Illinois Gov. Rod) Blagojevich to Rumsfeld: Act against trafficking

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0512300235dec30,1,4219519.story

Blagojevich to Rumsfeld: Act against trafficking

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In a letter expected to go to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Friday, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich said he is troubled by the Pentagon's inaction on human trafficking and called on Rumsfeld to take aggressive measures to protect human rights.

Blagojevich, a former congressman, was reacting to a story in Tuesday's Tribune about the Pentagon's delay in adopting rules that bar overseas contractors from supporting human trafficking for forced labor and prostitution. His letter also is in response to a Tribune series in October, "Pipeline to Peril," that exposed an illicit pipeline used to funnel thousands of workers from South Asia to privatized U.S. military support operations in Iraq.

"The time to act is now," Blagojevich told Rumsfeld, according to a copy of the letter provided by the governor's office. The letter also touts a new Illinois law, which takes effect Sunday, that Blagojevich says will create stiff new penalties for anyone engaged in trafficking.