I know this is long but here is another part of Wikipedia
It really does lay it all out where it say the elders may be required MAY BE REQUIRED really that would not be the first this demanded of them but they only may be required!
Also they will not discourage the victim from speaking up, well I was threatened with being DF'ed and I was told I have to be stopped by one of the CO's. But you read it and see it for yourself.
"Reporting to civil authorities
A press release issued in 2003 by Jehovah's Witnesses' Office of Public Information stated: "The elders may be required by law to report even uncorroborated or unsubstantiated allegations to the authorities. If so, we expect the elders to comply."[31] The Watchtower magazine has outlined the following policy: "Depending on the law of the land where he lives, the molester may well have to serve a prison term or face other sanctions from the State. The congregation will not protect him from this."[32] A 2002 memo to all congregations stated: "Our position is that secular authorities deal with crime while elders deal with sin."[2] Even where there is no mandatory reporting requirement, victims or others having knowledge of an incident of sexual abuse must not be discouraged from reporting it.[33]
The New York Times commented: "The shape of the scandal [in Jehovah's Witnesses] is far different than in the Catholic church, where most of the people accused of abuse are priests and a vast majority of the victims were boys and young men. In the Jehovah's Witnesses, where congregations are often collections of extended families and church elders are chosen from among the laypeople, some of those accused are elders, but most are congregation members. The victims who have stepped forward are mostly girls and young women, and many accusations involve incest."[34]
Congregation elders are required to first contact the organization's legal department in cases of alleged abuse to establish whether there is a legal duty to report the sex crime to the civil authorities or not.[35] In Canada, elders have been advised: "There is a duty to report when one has reasonable and probable grounds to believe that there is abuse or a substantial risk of abuse and parents have failed to protect the child. The report shall be made forthwith to the local child welfare authorities. [...] Elders must be aware, however, that once they have knowledge, they have an obligation. They cannot just hope that someone else will report. They must follow through quickly, and be sure that it is done."[36]
The elders' manual, Pay Attention to Yourselves and to All the Flock, states: "Though it is not the responsibility of the Christian congregation to enforce Caesar's laws, the very nature of some crimes demands that they be reported to secular authorities."[37] A 1995 memo to elders stated: "Many states make it mandatory that elders report an accusation to the proper authorities but other states do not. In those states where such is required, oftentimes the parent, the guardian, or the accused person himself can do the reporting."[38] This was publicized by 1997.[39]
In 2000, elders in Great Britain were instructed: "The elder approached must encourage the complainant to consider his or her responsibility to report the matter to the authorities without delay and should also explain that he himself might have a duty to report the matter to the proper authorities," and that "all in the Christian congregation will want to consider their personal and moral responsibility to alert the appropriate authorities in cases where a serious criminal offense of this type has been committed, or there exists a risk that one may be committed."[40][41] In 2008, the Watch Tower Society of Britain, in discussions with the UK Charities Commission, undertook to produce a Child Protection Policy and update its procedures to bring them into line with other religious and secular bodies.[42]
[edit]Cover-up allegations Critics claim that in numerous cases, members of Jehovah's Witnesses have been prevented from reporting child molestation to civil authorities.[43][44]
Doctrinally, Jehovah's Witnesses handle all matters internally, which in recent years prompted accusations and lawsuits of a systematic sex offender cover-up. Recent policies sent to elders in 2002 state: "Child abuse is a crime. Never suggest to anyone that they should not report an allegation of child abuse to the police or other authorities. If you are asked, make it clear that whether to report the matter to the authorities or not, is a personal decision for each individual to make and that there are no congregation sanctions for either decision. That is, no elder will criticize anyone who reports such an allegation to the authorities".[45] This has been the Watchtower Society's position since at least 1993, when a memo to elders stated: "It is also a personal decision if the alleged victim chooses to report such accusations to the secular authorities."[46]
Particularly since around 2000, the Jehovah's Witnesses organization has been accused of covering up cases of child molestation committed by their members. In February 2001, Christianity Today-an evangelical journal that disagrees with the theological perspective of Jehovah's Witnesses-printed an article reporting allegations that Jehovah's Witnesses' policies made reporting sexual abuse difficult for members, and did not conform to typical treatment of such cases. The article also included a response by representatives of Jehovah's Witnesses.[47]
The BBC reported on the controversy around Jehovah's Witnesses child abuse in July 2002, in the Panorama program "Suffer the Little Children"[48] Jehovah's Witnesses headquarters published their response to many of the allegations made in the program, the substance of which is found in the article Jehovah's Witnesses and Child Protection on their official website.
According to Witness spokesman J. R. Brown, Jehovah's Witnesses are not required to report crimes to elders before calling civil authorities. Victims and their families are free to call police at will, he said, although some don't choose to.[49] A circular sent to elders in the USA stated: "In those states where such is required, oftentimes the parent, the guardian, or the accused person himself can do the reporting. In this way the confidentiality protected by ecclesiastical privilege is not violated."[50] The Watchtower Society maintains its existing policy, without an explicit requirement for elders to report all child abuse cases where such is not mandatorily required by law.[43][44][51]
[edit]Sex offender database
The headquarters of Jehovah's Witnesses, the Watchtower Society, requires all congregations to submit details of child abuse allegations and maintains a database on all cases of child abuse reported to them. A spokesperson for the Watchtower Society stated in May 2002, "Apart from being legally needed, they have been very helpful to us in our efforts to protect the flock from harm. Christian parents can rightly feel secure in the knowledge that such efforts are made to screen out possible child abusers from appointment to responsible positions within the congregation."[52]
