Bill Bowen just Emailed this to me and I wasn't too sure if had been posted. This is very significant. If anyone has Helen's Email or the Email of the Minister she wrote too asking for the enquiry, please post them.
hawk
Helen Clark Member of Parliament for Peterborough
FOR IMMEDIATE USE 15.07.02
HOUSE OF COMMONS
London SW1A 0AA
Press Release
JEHOVAH'S WITNESS CHILD SEX ABUSE
MP CALLS FOR INQUIRY
Helen Clark MP has tabled an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons
calling for an immediate inquiry into the allegations of child sexual
abuse amongst members of Jehovah's Witness congregations. This follows
the BBC Panorama expose of past and present cases, which have never been
adequately investigated due to the organisation's policy of requiring
two witnesses to an alleged offence. Mrs Clarke has been pursuing the
matter for nearly two years since been contacted by a constituent,
himself a victim as a child, but three successive Ministers have refused
to take any action.
"Panorama contacted me when they were preparing this programme and I was
able to put them in touch with my constituent and the police who were
also aware of the allegations" said Mrs Clarke "I'm delighted that the
matter is at last receiving the public scrutiny it deserves, having
written on a number of occasions to the Home Office without success. In
my opinion, Government Ministers have all been too anxious not to offend
a religious minority group and therefore too ready to accept outward
assurances that the proper procedures were in effect. The Children of
members of Jehovah's Witnesses must be afforded the same protection
against sexual abuse as any other children in our society. I hope this
EDM will receive sufficient support to put additional pressure on the
Government to take action. I would be very surprised if I am the only
Member of Parliament to have been approached on these issues.
ENDS
Text of EDM
EARLY DAY MOTION
JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES AND CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE
That this house congratulates the BBC on its showing of the Panorama
programme, which exposes the lack of an appropriate child protection
policy amongst Jehovah's Witnesses, since it is the organisation's
policy to consider congregation members accused of child sexual abuse
innocent unless there are two witnesses, even in the case of listed
paedophiles; notes that previous attempts on the part of victims of this
abuse to obtain official recognition of the issues involved have been
unsuccessful and calls upon the Government to institute an immediate
enquiry into the circumstances of past and present cases of such abuse.
CONTACTS: Mrs Helen Clark MP 020 7219 6062
_____
Helen Clark Member of Parliament for Peterborough
HRC/IAJM 15th July, 2002
HOUSE OF COMMONS
London SW1A 0AA
Mr. Hilary Benn , M.P.,
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State,
Home Office.
Dear Hillary,
Jehovah's Witnesses
Thank you for your letter of 26 June, which I have already forwarded to
my constituent Mr. XXXXXX.
However, last night's "Panorama" programme on this subject showed that
this is an extremely serious problem. From my own correspondence with
your office, it seems to be one which successive Ministers have not
fully addressed. It appears to have been preferable to simply accept
the guidelines, issued by the Jehovah's Witnesses, as read.
Mr. XXXXX particularly mentions that the "Letters to Elders" sent from
the headquarters of the Jehovah's Witnesses are normally kept under lock
and key, so that ordinary members do not see them. He asked why this
process is so secretive.
The spokesman from headquarters (in the United States) said on the
programme that the Witnesses had their own register of paedophiles --
with 23,720 names on it (in Europe, Canada and the U. S.). As this is
an international organisation, their policy stems from the U.S.; they
are a corporate body whose representatives in England are not
independent.
One of the police officers interviewed on the programme, Sgt. Steve
Colley of the West Midlands Police, said of the Simon Brady case with
which he had been involved, that it was "criminally negligent" that the
Witnesses had not passed on details to the police when they first
learned them.
I should like you to know that I am today tabling an EDM on the subject
(copy enclosed). I hope that you will Institute and urgent inquiry into
this whole question.
Yours Helen
(signature)