by BonaFide 59 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse
should they not do what is required of them by law?
Should they report sex crimes only if they're required by law to do so? That was the point I was trying to make. Should they not report any incidents of sexual abuse or molestation, regardless of whether or not they're required to by law?
Legally it is pretty black and white.....
The WTS legal department is just doing it's job and still is very much influenced by Covington (Lawyer first and JW second)
As for the rest of the account...... shades of grey.
Thank you Bonafide and Barbara for sharing. This confirms so many peoples suspicions, which is the Watchtower is only watching out for themselves. For those that don't understand what is so freak'n wrong about this is:
1. The brothers (not faulting you Bonafide you were brainswashed) are not allowed to follow their conscience and operate independently.
2. The Society's only concern is covering their butt and doing the bare minimun of the law, not protecting a child. Having an anonymous tipster report this incident is going to be taken less seriously than being reported by the eyewitnesses minister.
This is such a double edged sword for the society. Imagine if they did the responsible thing and urged all the Zombies at KH to take molestation seriously and act independenlty according to their conscience. Does anyone else see the witch hunt that would happen? Every grudge in the KH would now involve a molestation charge! As paranoid and petty as JWs are, it would be like the Salem Witch Trials all over. It would be freaking Hilarious, Brother "spiritually weak" takes the PO's parking spot. Next thing he knows he's in the back room accused of stared and little boys privates in the men's room during the service meeting, LOL. Now that I think of it, it was reading The Crucible at 16 that started opening my eyes to the fact that these weren't God' people, just another sad f-cked up church in American History.
Thank you for your comments. I wish I had handled it differently.
Some other details:
The mother came from a developing country, and had moved here to the U.S. two or three years before this incident. She did not speak English. Some, not all, but some persons from developing countries view these types of situations differently than those raised here in the U.S. Her viewpoint of the incident was that they were "misbehaving", both of them. It was as if they had stolen a candy bar or something. She really didn't think it was an actual crime by the Ministerial Servant, she called the elders because she thought we should know about the "sin." I remember her phrasing the incident to us as what THEY were doing, not WHAT WAS DONE TO HER SON. In fact, she seemed to view her son as the more responsible one. She was even apologetic. Perhaps because the Ministerial Servant was so limited mentally, I am not sure.
That viewpoint by the mother worked in the Society's favor, because she wanted to just scold THE BOTH OF THEM for the incident AND MOVE ON AND FORGET ABOUT IT. Just what Bethel wanted.
We were never told by the Society or the C.O. to go back to the house to talk to the victim. A married brother was asked to study with the boy, and to bring his wife along.
BF
One more point about the mom. In some cultures, even here in the U.S., they think the more you talk about a bad incident, THE WORSE YOU MAKE IT. So they don't talk about it. This is a deeply ingrained cultural idea.
I remember brothers being assaulted and robbed at gunpoint in my assignment. I was one of them. When it happened to others, I would express my sadness, if I could I would give the person some money. But the counsel I heard from the elders to them was always the same, "Don't think about what happened or talk about it, you will make it worse. Just forget about it. Put it out of your mind."
That is what some cultures think about victims of molestation. They think if they talk about it with the child, THEY ARE MAKING IT WORSE FOR THE CHILD BY MAKING A BIG DEAL OUT OF IT.
I am not saying I agree, just that is the way things like that are often viewed in other cultures.
BF
should they not do what is required of them by law?
I have no problem a person or an organization performing the MINIMUM required by law. I do have a problem with that person or organizaton subsequently presenting themselves as morally and religiously superior to those laws and the governments who established those laws.
I also have problem with JWs and the often heard contention that 'they have the best child abuse procedures or any religous organization in the world.' They do not. Catholics, Mormons and a host of other churches perform the MINIMUM required by law also.
"What should have been of utmost importance here?"
Oh you know that answer to that question, why do you even have to ask?
Josie
Now I wonder how the victim has been doing lately. The Society never offered any help whatsoever to the victim.
BF
Actually theWTBTS does the minimum to cooperate with the law. They have even suggested that elduhs should not cooperate with duly appointed authorities with a search warrant if they go to the KH.
And of course they are not even MORALLY bound to turn over a murderer as far as they are concerned.
Remember the "Murder Letter" to elders in Florida on this?
HB
For as long as the WTS treat abuse as a sin it will be handled according to the procedures enforced by Brooklyn.
If elders were empowered to use their conscience hopefully the majority would see abuse for the crime it is and involve the authorities with unrestricted cooperation.
Yet another tragic example of how ones being captive to a concept can destroy OTHER peoples lives.
