https://www.metropoles.com/brasil/testemunhas-de-jeova-punicao-pedofilos
NOTE: You can easily have Google translate this excellent article from Portuguese into English. It's a very long article to read and I'm only posting a small part of it in English. (BA)
07/15/2024 02:00 ,updated07/15/2024 11:33
Jehovah's Witnesses ease punishment for pedophiles in manual
Jehovah's Witnesses' Doctrine Manual Only Judges Pedophiles in the Church If the Victim Has at Least Two Witnesses
“I went through two abuses in which I was not heard.” This is the story of one of the victims of a pedophilia complaint within the Christian denomination Jehovah’s Witnesses. At the time of the incident, she was only 10 years old and, according to her, she was ignored by the “court” of the doctrine because she did not bring witnesses who could confirm the crime suffered.
https://www.metropoles.com/brasil/testemunhas-de-jeova-punicao-pedofilos
The organization claims to abhor “child abuse” and considers it “a crime.”
However, publications support practices that make punishment more difficult. The magazine “The Watchtower – Announcing Jehovah’s Kingdom,” for example, serves as a handbook for congregation elders. One version states that at least two witnesses are required for a legal hearing to begin within the church against someone accused of child sexual abuse.
“This rule has a clearly discriminatory connotation against women and girls and allows the aggressor to continue committing this type of heinous crime,” explains the Public Prosecutor (MP-SP) and President of the Pró-Vítima Institute, Celeste Leite dos Santos.
According to her, as the crime occurs in secret, there are unlikely to be any witnesses.
“In addition to not protecting and welcoming the victim, it also encourages their revictimization and, often, the victim is punished by being expelled from the community. The problem is known to the leadership of the church based in the United States,” he argues.
Neglected victim
“I was seen as a fool who knew it was wrong but let it happen. In both cases [of abuse] I suffered, it was members of the congregation who committed it. They received no punishment. This makes me believe that the practice continues to be carried out,” says victim Mirela Costa, now 26 years old.
“I was seen as a fool who knew it was wrong but let it happen. In both cases [of abuse] I suffered, it was members of the congregation who committed it. They received no punishment. This makes me believe that the practice continues to be carried out,” says victim Mirela Costa, now 26 years old.
The church handbook relies on biblical interpretations to justify the need for multiple witnesses. A May 2019 issue of The Watchtower magazine states that this requirement is necessary “to maintain a high standard of justice.”
READ MORE: https://www.metropoles.com/brasil/testemunhas-de-jeova-punicao-pedofilos