In Cologne, reporter groped while covering Carnival on live television

[GennGreymane]

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/02/06/eu...ped/index.html

he city of Cologne, Germany, fell back into the spotlight of sexual assault this week, when its annual street Carnival kicked off.

A woman reporting from the city center for a Belgian broadcaster was groped live on television, and police are searching for a suspect.

The city has been on high alert for sexual assault after hundreds of women filed criminal complaints of having been groped on New Year's Eve by men described as being of North African or Arabic origin. A handful of the complaints alleged rape.

But Thursday's incident during a celebration called Women's Carnival does not appear to be related. The men taunting Esmeralda Labye in the lead-up to the harassment appear to be of European origin.

"I'd like to emphasize, and this seems important me, that the incident has been caused by young men speaking German," she said.

As Labye delivered her live report for RTBF, men behind her began making obscene gestures. A man kissed her on the neck, she said. Then someone whispered a proposition into her ear.

Because of the heightened police presence for the massive public event, in which tens of thousands of revelers celebrate and alcohol consumption is high, she was not concerned things would get out of hand.

"As I was waiting to wrap up my live, one of the three men touched my breast. At that moment, I lost my temper. I turned and told them in English: 'I won't allow this to happen twice! Don't touch me. Don't touch me.'"

Three men standing around her left, she said.

RTBF, a CNN affiliate, has decided not to re-broadcast the video of the incident but has published two still images. The station filed a criminal complaint with Cologne police to help expedite the investigation.

"The station expresses respect and support for its colleague journalist and disgust and condemnation for the attackers," RTBF said in a statement.

Continued work
After the incident, Labye decided to finish out her work day, RTBF said. "Cologne's mayor's office apologized to the station for these acts and gave its support to our colleague journalist and promised police security if needed."

A 17-year-old boy recognized himself in the shot behind Labye and turned himself in to police in the company of his mother, Cologne police said, but he said he had not harassed the reporter. After reviewing the footage, police decided it corroborated his claim and let him go.

Carnival
Carnival is celebrated in many traditionally Catholic regions.

It is intended as a last goodbye from the pleasures of the flesh before the onset of Lent, a time in which observant Catholics give up some pleasures, or fast, to reflect the biblical story of Jesus' fasting in the desert before beginning his public ministry.

But the celebration has grown in many places into a bawdy secular street party.

During Thursday's Women's Carnival, police in Cologne, a city of roughly 1 million residents, lowered its threshold for stepping in during possible incidents and detained at least 190 people.

"With the rise in alcohol consumption, the potential for aggression unfortunately also rose in the evening," police said. "Police forces on duty had to step in more and more to prevent escalation."

Police registered more than 220 criminal complaints, most of which involved personal injury. At least 18 complaints were sexual in nature, ranging from sexual insult to a possible attempted rape.

[Templar 331]

They weren't brown, no outrage will happen. Just a good old "they were just hammered" excuse.

[Deleted]

They weren't brown, no outrage will happen. Just a good old "they were just hammered" excuse.

Pretty much this.

[Kraenen]

I'm guessing this story (and others) will be used to pretend there's some sort of equality in rape by ethnicity in Europe. "See! They do it too!"

[Deleted]

I'm guessing this story (and others) will be used to pretend there's some sort of equality in rape by ethnicity in Europe. "See! They do it too!"

You mean the same way anytime ANYONE from the ME or an Islamic person commits a crime, that is used to bang the drums of anti-Muslim / anti-ME sentiment?

[Spectral]

You mean the same way anytime ANYONE from the ME or an Islamic person commits a crime, that is used to bang the drums of anti-Muslim / anti-ME sentiment?

You know what's interesting? There's data available on crime rates, so we don't have to operate purely by anecdote.

[Deleted]

You know what's interesting? There's data available on crime rates, so we don't have to operate purely by anecdote.

Which changes what now with what I said? Every single time something happens committed by a refugee or migrant, there's 2-3 threads on the subject. There's pretty much 0 subjects written about similar crimes committed in European countries for the most part, not because they don't happen, but because no one gives a shit.

[Skaiz]

People give a shit when crime is imported. It feels preventable. people get pissed

[Deleted]

Which changes what now with what I said? Every single time something happens committed by a refugee or migrant, there's 2-3 threads on the subject. There's pretty much 0 subjects written about similar crimes committed in European countries for the most part, not because they don't happen, but because no one gives a shit.

You do know why that is though, do you?

It's because the ones were born here and the others we kindly invited.
It's like you invite a hobo into your apartment and he shits on your dining table. The reaction should be the same too.
"What the fuck are you doing, get the hell out of here!"

Aside from the fact that breakings into homes and cars have at least doubled. Not to speak of the sexual assaults.
Granted some of those are natives who now see that the police can't do shit against you.

[Deleted]

You do know why that is though, do you?

It's because the ones were born here and the others we kindly invited.
It's like you invite a hobo into your apartment and he shits on your dining table. The reaction should be the same too.
"What the fuck are you doing, get the hell out of here!"

Aside from the fact that breakings into homes and cars have at least doubled. Not to speak of the sexual assaults.
Granted some of those are natives who now see that the police can't do shit against you.

No, it's more like you invited a bunch of people to a party, a few of them act stupid as shit, but everyone that shows gets shit on, regardless of whether they did anything wrong or not. While at the same time, some of your cousins that were also at the party did the same thing, and no one gives a shit because they're "related" to you.

It's a shitty double standard.

[Deleted]

You act like culture and were you grow up and in what type of society doesn't affect how a person reason or behave. All people don't think alike. How we are raised and under what circumstances does matter.

[nextormento]

I'm surprised it took two days for this to become a thread.
Has anyone seen any footage of the kiss, the boob grab, the groping or the assault? I can only find videos of the humping kinda thing :S

[Deleted]

You know what's interesting? There's data available on crime rates, so we don't have to operate purely by anecdote.

Except of course the 'some people' has put it into practice to hide said crimes.

[Strangebrew]

Which changes what now with what I said? Every single time something happens committed by a refugee or migrant, there's 2-3 threads on the subject. There's pretty much 0 subjects written about similar crimes committed in European countries for the most part, not because they don't happen, but because no one gives a shit.

What's stopping you from making threads?

[Orlong]

If they just groped the reporter, its no big deal. Noone is harmed by having their butt pinched. If it turned into a rape though thats a huge problem

[Deleted]

What's stopping you from making threads?

Nothing at all. But the difference is people don't really care about something they see as "It happens" unless it's a refugee/immigrant, or has something to do with feminists, etc etc.

[Spectral]

Nothing at all. But the difference is people don't really care about something they see as "It happens" unless it's a refugee/immigrant, or has something to do with feminists, etc etc.

Yeah, people tend to care when the local rape rate doubles as a result of invited guests causing trouble. It's unfortunate that people tend to relate better to anecdotes than data, I really would prefer that the focus be on data, but the basic point that Europe's recent round of immigration has had a ton of bad behavior associated with it seems quite true.

[Strangebrew]

Nothing at all. But the difference is people don't really care about something they see as "It happens" unless it's a refugee/immigrant, or has something to do with feminists, etc etc.

And?
We are inviting these people, we are letting them into our homes, while we know this happens already amongst natives, but no let's invite more so we can create whole new levels of crime.

There isn't some double standards going on as you like to claim, it's a perfectly natural reaction, especially when people like you try to shove it under the carpet and pretend it doesn't happen.

[Dextroden]

Nothing at all. But the difference is people don't really care about something they see as "It happens" unless it's a refugee/immigrant, or has something to do with feminists, etc etc.

You and certain others don't seem to care at all, since you just roll your eyes when any instance of it occurs.

[StayTuned]

White drunk guy gropes TV reporters

Super boring news, why do you even post this