my question is this, - even if the elders might skirt round the issue, and come up with all this mouth of two witnesses stuff, why cant the parent simply go to the police - in this are they just as accountable? and are they plain thick?
I read through the thread and might have missed the answer to this so. . .
JWs are given a very clear directive in matters of disagreement between brothers. For some odd reason they consider sexual abuse of a child a "disagreement"
- Go to your brother and try to come to some agreement. If that doesn't work. . .
- Take 2 or 3 brothers along to witness or mediate the problem - that is where the elders come in. Regardless of what decision the elders make
- The accused brother might confess - it could happen in which case he would be reproved and the case for the victim closed
- The accused denies and the victim and family are threatened into silence and the elders say that without 2 witnesses who saw the abuse (like that is going to happen) the accused is declared innocent and there is nothing more they can do. Then they are told. . .
- Do not discuss the matter with other JWs or risk being accused of "slander" and "causing divisions" in the cong - if people know they may feel forced to take sides.
- Do not discuss the matter with anyone outside the congregation because that might bring shame on Jehovah and the organization. This one cancels out any directive told to the public about going to the authorities (police, or social services).
That last one overrides any public announcement that the WTS encourages people to go to the authorities. That would only be the case if the accused is NOT a JW. As long as the accused is a JW victims and their families must follow the above with the last taking precedence over everything