Sorry not to have participated earlier to this thread.
The program was one of my goals as exit strategy, together with the sending of a 6 pages letter to over 300 JW delegitimizing the JW baptism and the FDS as the entity used by God to communicate with men, the launching of my internet site (basically in Italian) and the organization of Barbara’s European trip, where I acted as translator of her two conferences on pedophilia and the dangers of associating with Jehovah Witnesses.
The judicial committee had invited me to attend on May 20 th of 2009. That same day, instead of me showing up at the JC meeting, my letter was received by over 300 people and my internet site went online.
Right after, I have contacted the Swiss Television national channel and lobbied the airing of a new program on JW, as a follow-up to the previous Swedish program on pedophilia, which was aired in Switzerland 5 years ago in July 2005.
The idea was discussed with the TV program management and for a number of months, I had to meet with several representatives to tell my story and what the subject could be for a new program.
After a while, the project was accepted. At first they just wanted to allow me to tell my story for about 10 minutes, but when they heard the different aspects of the subject I would have loved to see discussed in the program, they ended up giving it the maximum time allowed for that national Swiss French program, viz. 55 minutes!
I suggested that the program included Ray Franz, Barbara Anderson and Bill Bowen and I gave the journalists their contact details. Their participation would have given more weight to what the program wanted to demonstrate.
Unfortunately, Franz declined the offer, because he did not feel well physically, but gave me his agreement to use, if needed any of the tapes available of his different trips in Europe.
At the end, the journalists discarded this option, but retained the participation of Bill and Barbara.
This is how their interview has finally ended up in the program.
The shooting and the collection of the information from which to compile the program took over three months and has cost, according to the journalist, over 200’000 dollars.
The whole thing was completed end June, and we were just waiting for the program to be put on the agenda. Finally, it has been aired on November 11 th , and will be aired again tomorrow afternoon by the Swiss TV and will, later, be aired by TV5 all over the world, but we do not have the dates yet.
The Swiss TV opens a forum for each program it airs, every week, to give the public the opportunity to comment, ask questions or … bitch about it.
The reactions on the forum are very interesting. You have had the chance to read the translation done in Queben and posted by Barbara. Unfortunately, translating the whole forum is just impossible.
Right now, there are over 120 threads open, each one with its own discussions, which can be 1 to over a dozen posts each. It is just unbelievable the echo this program is having over here.
Geneva is not a large town, just over 300’000 people. You normally know several people who know several others, and at the end one can say that you are … known around, specially if your professional activity touch hundreds of people, such as the internet business of Fulvio, my son, the bank business of Amanda, my daughter or my job at DuPont, one of the American multinationals around here where I spent 38 years.
Therefore, the comments coming from Geneva, are very very personal. Many people have appreciated and applauded our courage to come in the open, not hiding our name or our face. Some of these know us personally. Others have recounted their miserable experiences as JW.
Many active, inactive or ex-JW whom we know very well, even when we read their anonymous posts on the forum, have been widely violent, attacking personally my kids and myself. Fulvio and Amanda have responded, I didn’t.
I am waiting for the activity on the forum to die out and then I will post my reply and comments.
I have already prepared it (in French) and it is just waiting for the right moment to be posted.
It is 4 pages long, and covers
- a) distinction between people and the Organization and its teachings
- b) why I left the Organization (which was obviously one of the questions many people had knowning that I had been a witness for 59 years, and an Elder for 27 years)
- c) what I am doing now (some have alleged that I am a guru leading a new cult ….)
- d) what I think of the outrageous and despicable comments made by many witnesses and ex witnesses.
I will be translating the document into English and post it right here.
Well, this is where we stand now.
Roberto DI STEFANO – alias Nick!
