I got 2 replies to my letters this morning. One was from my local MP saying he had passed my letter to another minister and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are investigating to see if its an appropriate issue to raise, and the other was from the WBTS of Britain. The letter reads as below, and I would appreciate your comments on it, and some good qoutes to include in a reply.
Dear Mr xxxxxx
This will acknowledge receipt of your letter 2 October 2003 regarding Victoria Boer. Her sad case was heard by a court in Canada. Like you, the only information we have on the Court's decision to award legal costs is what we have read in media reports.
If these reports are accurate it would seem that Victoria Boer refused an out of court settlement amounting to four times the sum she was eventually awarded in damages. The media reports appear to show that her failure to accept an out of court settlement meant that under Canadian law the Court was obliged to award costs against her.
Even if, regrettably, on isolated occasions allegations of child molestation might not have been handled with appropriate sensitivity and understanding, our unequivocal abhorrence of child abuse, our sympathy for victims and our desire to protect children from such heinous acts has been a matter of public record for many years.
We send our Christian good wishes.
Yours sincerely
WatchTower B & T Society of Britain