Aussie Jehovah's Witnesses hid 1,000+ sex abuse cases

[Coldwinterskies]

Some of you might remember that a few months ago I posted about how the Jehovah's Witnesses, an ultra-fundamentalist cult that prides itself on being morally superior to "worldly" people (their term for non-JWs), has policies that allow pedophiles to go unpunished. Their attitude about sex abuse is very Duggar-like - they feel that it is better for the church elders to deal with it than for the police to be involved. You also need to produce two witnesses to "prove" that sexual misconduct took place - and of course pedophiles often make sure there aren't witnesses to what they are doing, so in most cases absolutely nothing is done about it.

The JWs have been called out on this in the past and several lawsuits have already moved forward over this problem in America and the UK. The JW leaders' response has been laughably inept. For example, their leader Tight Pants Tony recently appeared on their televangelist webcast recently to show off an old article they published in the 1980s about the dangers of homosexual child predators as "proof" they take child abuse seriously.

Yes, really. Ex-JWs call him "Tight Pants Tony" because he previously achieved internet fame because he had made accusations that homosexual fashion designers conspire to put men in tight pants for their own lecherous pleasure.

Though this is a worldwide problem for JWs, Australia in particular is now taking a closer look at what's going on in the JW congregations there. Thanks to the Aussie investigation, it looks like the shit is finally hitting the fan in the mainstream press. It has now come out that the Aussie branch of the JWs has knowingly hid over 1,000 cases of child abuse from the justice system (and the watchdog site JWSurvey confirms, that is not just 1,000 instances of sex abuse, but 1,000 perpetrators who may quite possibly have abused more than one kid).

Since the JWs are a very patriarchal fundamentalist cult, you probably won't be shocked at how they are trying to spin the reason for why they destroyed evidence in these cases:

Jehovah’s Witnesses destroyed notes about child sexual abuse to stop them falling into the wrong hands and to “protect their wivesâ€, a church elder has told a national hearing in Sydney.

The opening day of a royal commission hearing into abuse within the church has heard how 1,006 allegations of child abuse since 1950 were dealt with internally and never reported to police.

It has also heard that victims were made to confront their abusers and left feeling as if they had sinned.

Max Horley was an elder for the Jehovah’s Witness congregation in Narrogin, Western Australia, in the late 1980s when a woman, known as BCB, was interviewed about her relationship with another church elder, Bill Neill.

On Monday, BCB, 47, told how Neill, who is dead, groomed her from the age of 15. She said he would molest her and spy on her when she was in the shower.

She was friendly with Neill’s daughter and spent a lot of time at their house, where “uncle Bill†would tongue kiss her.

When the abuse was revealed, BCB was asked to attend meetings with two elders and Neill, who joked about what he had done. At meetings BCB said she felt guilty and found it hard to detail the abuse.

Neill denied any intentional misconduct.

Horley said Neill was later stood down as an elder because the allegations cast a shadow over his qualifications to teach the word of God. Horley, an elder in the church for more than 30 years, said notes about sexual abuse allegations were not kept in case they fell into the wrong hands.

“We do not want our wives knowing our stuff – what sort of things we are dealing with,†Horley said.

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He also said they destroyed notes because they wanted to limit the number of people in the congregation who knew about the abuse.

More info here:

http://www.theguardian.com/australia-ne ... quiry-told

[DGayle]

I know this is't going to be a popular opinion, but I think some religions should be illegal. Some religions are used as a front for abuse.

[Coldwinterskies]

I know this is't going to be a popular opinion, but I think some religions should be illegal. Some religions are used as a front for abuse.

I would totally support taking away tax-exempt status, at the very least, from any religion that can be shown to practice these types of damaging behaviors:

-Concealing crime from the proper authorities (like this instance of hiding sexual abuse from the police)

-Using shunning to punish people who leave the religion (since I consider that to be psychological abuse). Many ex-JWs have no contact with their families who are still believers because the organization encourages shunning of anyone who leaves. I know that other groups like ultra-orthodox Jews, the Amish, etc. also use shunning as a way of controlling people.

We should take emotional abuse as seriously as if these groups were encouraging physical abuse, IMO.

[Coldwinterskies]

Meanwhile, I am sure that it is totally a coincidence that the JWs have put out a new magazine article warning their followers not to believe everything they read in newspapers:

jw.org/en/publications/magazines/w20151015/true-because-it-is-on-internet/

When we read sensational news items, remember that love is not unduly suspicious; nor is it naive or gullible. Above all, love refuses to believe malevolent insinuations about Jehovah’s organization or lies about our brothers that are circulated by people who are slaves to “the father of the lie,†Satan the Devil. (John 8:44; 1 Cor. 13:7) Thinking ability and discernment will help us become “shrewd†and consider how to handle responsibly the increasing amount of information available to us on a daily basis. As the Bible says, “the naive will inherit foolishness, but the shrewd are crowned with knowledge.â€â€”Prov. 14:18.

TOTALLY coincidental that they would be talking about this now, amirite?

[DaffyDill]

The Royal Commission into child abuse within the Jehovahs Witnesses began yesterday and is continuing on today. Royal Commissions have pretty far reaching powers and have been used here to investigate things such as government and police corruption. So this is pretty big.

Church elders could now face criminal charges for concealment of serious indictable offences and failure to disclose sexual offences against minors, counsel assisting the commission Angus Stewart SC said.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/n ... 7458483269

Apparently, the JW's have "disfellowshipped" around 400 supposed child abusers, only to readmit them to the fold at a later date. Although the JW's profess to abhor child abuse, their actions as a church certainly belie that.

[Inky]

Do they give any kind of time-line for how long the inquiry will take?

That is pretty big stuff they're dealing with- I hope they do send those who failed to report and covered up the abuse to jail. I'm not sure how the justice system in Australia works. In Canada it seems to take forever to get anything done, and inquiries don't always produce results that are followed.

[DaffyDill]

Do they give any kind of time-line for how long the inquiry will take?

That is pretty big stuff they're dealing with- I hope they do send those who failed to report and covered up the abuse to jail. I'm not sure how the justice system in Australia works. In Canada it seems to take forever to get anything done, and inquiries don't always produce results that are followed.

I think, because the same Chief Justice is involved as Commission Chairman, that this is part of a larger Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse which began about 2 1/2 years ago, and after being given an extension, is expected to conclude at the end of 2017. Up to now, the Commission has already sent over 600 matters on to police with a view to prosecuting offenders, and about half of those are related to "faith based" institutions.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-07-15/c ... ks/6621742

Royal Commissions can go on for quite a while, even through a change of government, but once started, they can't be cancelled by an incoming new government. So it will be interesting to see what happens as a result of all this. Over 600 matters already referred to police for prosecution is terribly sad when you consider all the people that may have been suffering without hope of justice until now.

[VixenToast]

I've always been leery of JW. I don't really know much about them like I do LDS. I'll read their Watch Tower out of curiosity and boredom, but there is never any info.

This gives me more reason to distrust and dislike them.

[Cleopatra7]

I know this is't going to be a popular opinion, but I think some religions should be illegal. Some religions are used as a front for abuse.

I'm increasingly favoring a more aggressive approach to religion, like what we see in France. Granted, the church is essentially owned by the state (any FJers can correct me if I'm wrong), but it keeps religion, especially the Catholic Church which has a history of undermining French democracy, on a short leash. The Germans government also decides what is and isn't a legitimate religion. Maybe my view is extreme, but I'm tired of abuse in the usa being condoned just because someone has "sincerely held religious beliefs." In no other developed country would groups like the FLDS or the Kingston clan be given carte blanche to commit mass fraud, incest, and abuse under the guise of religion. At some point, secular people just need to say enough is enough.

[Jana814]

I know this is't going to be a popular opinion, but I think some religions should be illegal. Some religions are used as a front for abuse.

Agree!

[Coldwinterskies]

Here is the link for all the documents and testimony that have been released so far:

http://www.childabuseroyalcommission.go ... 15,-sydney

DaffyDill, I am so grateful to your country for choosing to give this issue some scrutiny. There are some absolutely appalling revelations in this investigation. I hope this does lead to consequences for those who allowed this to happen.

[DaffyDill]

Here is the link for all the documents and testimony that have been released so far:

http://www.childabuseroyalcommission.go ... 15,-sydney

DaffyDill, I am so grateful to your country for choosing to give this issue some scrutiny. There are some absolutely appalling revelations in this investigation. I hope this does lead to consequences for those who allowed this to happen.

I think this Royal Commission is a great thing too. However, as I said before, it is quite a wide ranging enquiry, and not just limited to religious organisations, although at least one, the JWs, have featured prominently. Just a couple of days ago, a familiar face from Australian television was charged with child sex offences as part of the same Royal Commission.

[Howl]

I was in the car Friday evening and heard part of this piece on NPR: Did leaders of Jehovah’s Witnesses cover up child sex abuse?

It was originally broadcast on the PBS News Hour on Feb 16, so I'm not sure why it was being re-broadcast as a radio piece 6 months later.

You can watch on YouTube or read the transcript of the show here:

www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/leaders-jehovah ... sex-abuse/

This is about a woman (Candace Conti) who sued the Jehovah's Witnesses because her abuser was allowed to join a new JW congregation with a good letter of recommendation, even though he had already confessed to abusing his step daughter. He is still a member in good standing of this JW congregation. Although it focuses on her situation, it spells out pretty clearly how the JWs protect abusers. The thing that really chafes my chaps is the attempt by the JWs to cast their desire to handle this internally as a first amendment issues. Fortunately, the jury on the Conti case didn't buy that argument. And yes, he did go on to continue to abuse.

The extent to which abusers are protected is appalling. While they are claiming they don't tolerate child sexual abuse, they still actively protecting abusers in the US, just as they have in Australia and probably all over the world.

[Toothfairy]

I know this is't going to be a popular opinion, but I think some religions should be illegal. Some religions are used as a front for abuse.

Yet people think just because you believe in a God, it stops abuse from happening. Abuse is common in religious circles.

[Coldwinterskies]

In the past when an American court tried to get the "Governing Body" (one of the seven men who are the top leaders of the Jehovah's Witnesses) to give a deposition in a child abuse lawsuit, they simply ignored the court's request and were spanked with a massive default judgement, so it is pretty significant to those of us who have been following the Jehovah's witness child abuse scandal that apparently one of the Gov Bod members WILL be showing up in Australian court later this week.

A lot of ex-JWs have been following the live stream of the investigation, which as that link mentions can be seen at http://www.childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au

It has already been full of some pretty damning testimony as it is. Those who are interested can see some of the most important moments summarized in this reddit thread on the ex-JW community:

https://www.reddit.com/r/exjw/comments/ ... ighlights/

[blessalessi]

Thanks for the links. I will be following this.

[Coldwinterskies]

I was in the car Friday evening and heard part of this piece on NPR: Did leaders of Jehovah’s Witnesses cover up child sex abuse?

It was originally broadcast on the PBS News Hour on Feb 16, so I'm not sure why it was being re-broadcast as a radio piece 6 months later.

You can watch on YouTube or read the transcript of the show here:

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/leaders- ... sex-abuse/

This is about a woman (Candace Conti) who sued the Jehovah's Witnesses because her abuser was allowed to join a new JW congregation with a good letter of recommendation, even though he had already confessed to abusing his step daughter. He is still a member in good standing of this JW congregation. Although it focuses on her situation, it spells out pretty clearly how the JWs protect abusers. The thing that really chafes my chaps is the attempt by the JWs to cast their desire to handle this internally as a first amendment issues. Fortunately, the jury on the Conti case didn't buy that argument. And yes, he did go on to continue to abuse.

The extent to which abusers are protected is appalling. While they are claiming they don't tolerate child sexual abuse, they still actively protecting abusers in the US, just as they have in Australia and probably all over the world.

I am glad that you told us that NPR is giving this issue more attention. I feel like to date this issue has not gotten as much attention as it should because the JWs are so insular that most people don't understand them well enough to know about this type of dirty laundry. My HOPE is that the revelations from the Australia investigation will get people to scrutinize them more. The JWs are at least as complicit in abuse as the Catholic Church was, so IMO this should be a huge story....especially since JWs like to insist that they are far morally superior to "worldly" people - the hypocrisy is outrageous.

[DaffyDill]

Apparently Geoffrey Jackson (in Australia at the moment as his father is supposedly ill) has 3 options.

1. Refuse to appear before the Commission, stay in the country to look after his reportedly dying father and go to prison.

2. Appear before the Commission and take part in the worst PR debacle the cult has even seen.

3. Refuse to appear, flee the country and make it clear to the world that he is so scared of the Commission he will even abandon his dying father to avoid testimony.

Interesting...

[morfydd]

The Guardian article says there are about 68,000 JWs in Australia. That means 1 in 68 were abusers, whose victims actually took it to the church? So there are probably more? :pink-shock:

[Coldwinterskies]

Apparently Geoffrey Jackson (in Australia at the moment as his father is supposedly ill) has 3 options.

1. Refuse to appear before the Commission, stay in the country to look after his reportedly dying father and go to prison.

2. Appear before the Commission and take part in the worst PR debacle the cult has even seen.

3. Refuse to appear, flee the country and make it clear to the world that he is so scared of the Commission he will even abandon his dying father to avoid testimony.

Interesting...

Apparently it has been confirmed that Jackson WILL be testifying via a remote video link. The testimony is supposed to start in two hours!

[Coldwinterskies]

The Guardian article says there are about 68,000 JWs in Australia. That means 1 in 68 were abusers, whose victims actually took it to the church? So there are probably more? :pink-shock:

Yes, that's pretty troubling, isn't it? It makes me wonder if their belief system (very patriarchal, very sexually repressed) *creates* sexual predators, or if sexual predators are attracted to the organization because they know it is an environment where they can get away with their crimes.

Meanwhile, if you want to get angry, check out the propaganda video the JWs have put out in response to this. WHAT A COINCIDENCE that they would release a video of an Australian woman with a history of sexual abuse at a time like this, right?

Link to video here:

(link isn't broken because it was posted on Youtube by someone who is famous for being an anti-JW "apostate" even though he is still undercover within the organization)