Here the link to the investigation report of the University of Utrecht about the Dutch jw.org culture and abuse, ordered by the Dutch Governement. REPORT IS WRITTEN IN DUTCH.
https://issuu.com/dvhn/docs/3010_volledige_tekst_tcm28-426036
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Gorbatchov
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Link to investigation of Utrecht University about Dutch jw.org abuse and the jw.org culture, ordered by the Dutch Government
by Gorbatchov inhere the link to the investigation report of the university of utrecht about the dutch jw.org culture and abuse, ordered by the dutch governement.
report is written in dutch.. https://issuu.com/dvhn/docs/3010_volledige_tekst_tcm28-426036.
g..
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Must read Dutch newspaper article about jw culture related to abuse
by Gorbatchov inmust read news paper article about jw culture.. jehovahs: "you do not bring a brother to justice" a parallel community with deviating values and norms, which conceals abuse cases as quickly as possible and where women are subordinate to men.
that picture emerges from a report on the jehovah's witnesses published on thursday.
bas soetenhorst january 23, 2020, 5:16 pm a gathering of tens of thousands of jehovah's witnesses in the rai in 1979. image anp with the jehovah's witnesses, the biblical principle is that you should not bring your brother to justice.
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Gorbatchov
Must read news paper article about jw culture.
Jehovahs: "You do not bring a brother to justice" A parallel community with deviating values and norms, which conceals abuse cases as quickly as possible and where women are subordinate to men. That picture emerges from a report on the Jehovah's Witnesses published on Thursday. Bas Soetenhorst January 23, 2020, 5:16 PM A gathering of tens of thousands of Jehovah's Witnesses in the RAI in 1979. IMAGE ANP With the Jehovah's Witnesses, the biblical principle is that you should not bring your brother to justice. That statement by one of the (former) Jehovah's witnesses who are interviewed in the report marks the organization's difficult handling of sexual abuse. The report of employees of Utrecht University, who were commissioned by the House of Representatives to conduct research, outlines a parallel community that prefers to keep out the door. Leaders of the local community - elders or overseers - form judicial committees in cases of abuse. The elders are often particularly concerned about reputation damage. Local community leaders - called elders or overseers - form judicial committees in cases of abuse. That is not nearly to everyone's satisfaction. The elders are often particularly concerned about reputation damage. Last year, 751 people reported to an anonymous hotline that the Utrecht researchers had set up for (suspected) victims or people who were aware of abuse within the community. Three quarters of the victims feel that the treatment of their report by the Jehovah's is inadequate. No less than 57 percent of that group gave a score of 1 on a scale of 10. The average score was 3.3. Of the reported abuse, 34 percent were within the family. Both from experiences at the hotline and from a dozen interviews with anonymized (former) Jehovah's, it appears that the community focuses primarily on keeping the perpetrator on board. Quotation from a person involved: "When a perpetrator confesses and repents, as a victim you are actually expected to forgive and to sit next to him again in the Kingdom Hall (a religious meeting place - ed.)." Another witness: “A pedophile who has been in prison for five years is now in the Kingdom Hall again. The victim's family then moved. They were really made a scapegoat. " Recommendations from the committee of inquiry - Jehovah's people should pay more attention to victims and explicitly point out the possibility of reporting - Establishment of an internal reporting point for abuse cases - Training for elders in dealing with abuse cases - A cultural change to improve the position of women - Investigation into the introduction of a legal duty to report abuse cases, as already established in Australia and Belgium - Follow-up research into the extent to which the findings are representative of the Dutch community Men complete the service, which does not strengthen the position of the mostly female victims. Moreover, the so-called two-witness rule applies, whereby someone must confirm the story of the victim. In practice, abuse is often deemed unproven or victims are not believed and even punished. Quote from an interview by the researchers: "If a man says she's cheating, that's fine, but if I as a woman say that about him, I must have an elder or servant by my side." In the eyes of victims, perpetrators often get away with a mild correction, if they are found guilty. For example, there was a case where three people involved had similar experiences with a person. However, the court committee found it difficult to appoint an offender. The rule that the victim must confront the perpetrator in the presence of other men with what happened, many experience as intimidating. Elders also lack expertise. Quote from the report: "Pedophiles are manipulative, so they often overwhelm the elders." Exclusion Shame sometimes stands in the way of proper processing. A victim: “At home there has been attention for about a week to the abuse of my brother and me. Then we went back to the order of the day. " Fear of exclusion prevents many victims from going to the police. A person involved: “My father has asked a lawyer who has experience with this type of case. But that lawyer said: then you will probably be excluded and become an apostate. "Another:" It is always taught that you do not bring a case against your brother or sister. " Sometimes elders or circuit overseers discourage this in so many words: "The circuit overseer said," Leave it in Jehovah's hands, pray, go on field service. It is your test. It is difficult, but if you go to the police you get headlines. Do you want that?" Despite summary proceedings with which the Jehovah's administration tried to prevent the publication of the report on Thursday, the researchers write that the organization cooperated well. Other rules have recently been introduced to better handle abuse cases. For example, a perpetrator-victim confrontation is no longer mandatory. But in practice, little has changed according to those involved. Outside world like satan The Jehovah's Witnesses are a "Christian-fundamentalist end-time movement" with its own logic and norms and values, which - according to the report published by researchers from Utrecht University on Thursday - seem to "deviate to some extent" from current norms and norms in the society. Worldwide there are more than 8.5 million followers, according to the organization itself. In the Netherlands there are almost 30,000. They believe that humanity is in the "end time," the final phase before God intervenes and all non-Jehovahs are destroyed. The organization has a strict hierarchy, in which men are leading. At the top is the New York-based Governing Body, formed by eight veterans. Criticism of this is, according to an (ex) follower, "comparable to a North Korean who criticizes Kim Jong-un." This includes the Watchtower Society, an organization that manages its members worldwide, also from New York. The Dutch branch is located in Emmen. "Circular overseers" regularly visit Jehovah municipalities. Elders make the service within the congregation. They also do justice. Children usually attend regular schools, but performance is not highly regarded. VWO is sometimes discouraged. The "cleansing code" prohibits blood transfusions, celebrating Christmas, unnecessary contacts with non-Jehovahs and participation in civil activities, among other things. The individual is the property of the community. For those who do not comply with this, there is a risk of exclusion, which amounts to a "spiritual death certificate". Criticism from the outside world is often seen as a test. An interviewee told the researchers: “The outside world is Satanist. Only for members of the community (...) does a resurrection follow after the world has perished at Armageddon. " Another (former) Jehovah: “This committee of inquiry strengthens the core of Jehovah's witness belief. The idea is that there will be natural disasters and the Jehovah's Witnesses will be prosecuted as a harbinger of the Armageddon (..) For Jehovah's Witnesses you are the proof that they have the truth. "
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Dutch State secretary reaction about abuse report and argumentation judge
by Gorbatchov inreaction of state secretary and arguments of judge about report jw abuse in the netherlands.
minister dekker: report on jehovah's sketches "extremely worrying" picture
the report on the extent of sexual abuse within the community of jehovah's witnesses paints an extremely worrying picture.
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Gorbatchov
I think the use of the word "Jehovah's" give a good impression how the common Dutch public thinks about jw.org
The respect is fully gone now and that's not the fault of the public.
The organization is living at another planet, there imago is blown away.
Strange thing about Dutch (Holland) people is that we learn and speak English very fast and efficient and we feel very related to the UK and the USA.
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Must read Dutch newspaper article about jw culture related to abuse
by Gorbatchov injehovahs: "you do not bring a brother to justice"
a parallel community with deviating values and norms, which conceals abuse cases as quickly as possible and where women are subordinate to men.
that picture emerges from a report on the jehovah's witnesses published on thursday.
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Gorbatchov
Jehovahs: "You do not bring a brother to justice" A parallel community with deviating values and norms, which conceals abuse cases as quickly as possible and where women are subordinate to men. That picture emerges from a report on the Jehovah's Witnesses published on Thursday. Bas Soetenhorst January 23, 2020, 5:16 PM A gathering of tens of thousands of Jehovah's Witnesses in the RAI in 1979. IMAGE ANP With the Jehovah's Witnesses, the biblical principle is that you should not bring your brother to justice. That statement by one of the (former) Jehovah's witnesses who are interviewed in the report marks the organization's difficult handling of sexual abuse. The report of employees of Utrecht University, who were commissioned by the House of Representatives to conduct research, outlines a parallel community that prefers to keep out the door. Leaders of the local community - elders or overseers - form judicial committees in cases of abuse. The elders are often particularly concerned about reputation damage. Local community leaders - called elders or overseers - form judicial committees in cases of abuse. That is not nearly to everyone's satisfaction. The elders are often particularly concerned about reputation damage. Last year, 751 people reported to an anonymous hotline that the Utrecht researchers had set up for (suspected) victims or people who were aware of abuse within the community. Three quarters of the victims feel that the treatment of their report by the Jehovah's is inadequate. No less than 57 percent of that group gave a score of 1 on a scale of 10. The average score was 3.3. Of the reported abuse, 34 percent were within the family. Both from experiences at the hotline and from a dozen interviews with anonymized (former) Jehovah's, it appears that the community focuses primarily on keeping the perpetrator on board. Quotation from a person involved: "When a perpetrator confesses and repents, as a victim you are actually expected to forgive and to sit next to him again in the Kingdom Hall (a religious meeting place - ed.)." Another witness: “A pedophile who has been in prison for five years is now in the Kingdom Hall again. The victim's family then moved. They were really made a scapegoat. " Recommendations from the committee of inquiry - Jehovah's people should pay more attention to victims and explicitly point out the possibility of reporting - Establishment of an internal reporting point for abuse cases - Training for elders in dealing with abuse cases - A cultural change to improve the position of women - Investigation into the introduction of a legal duty to report abuse cases, as already established in Australia and Belgium - Follow-up research into the extent to which the findings are representative of the Dutch community Men complete the service, which does not strengthen the position of the mostly female victims. Moreover, the so-called two-witness rule applies, whereby someone must confirm the story of the victim. In practice, abuse is often deemed unproven or victims are not believed and even punished. Quote from an interview by the researchers: "If a man says she's cheating, that's fine, but if I as a woman say that about him, I must have an elder or servant by my side." In the eyes of victims, perpetrators often get away with a mild correction, if they are found guilty. For example, there was a case where three people involved had similar experiences with a person. However, the court committee found it difficult to appoint an offender. The rule that the victim must confront the perpetrator in the presence of other men with what happened, many experience as intimidating. Elders also lack expertise. Quote from the report: "Pedophiles are manipulative, so they often overwhelm the elders." Exclusion Shame sometimes stands in the way of proper processing. A victim: “At home there has been attention for about a week to the abuse of my brother and me. Then we went back to the order of the day. " Fear of exclusion prevents many victims from going to the police. A person involved: “My father has asked a lawyer who has experience with this type of case. But that lawyer said: then you will probably be excluded and become an apostate. "Another:" It is always taught that you do not bring a case against your brother or sister. " Sometimes elders or circuit overseers discourage this in so many words: "The circuit overseer said," Leave it in Jehovah's hands, pray, go on field service. It is your test. It is difficult, but if you go to the police you get headlines. Do you want that?" Despite summary proceedings with which the Jehovah's administration tried to prevent the publication of the report on Thursday, the researchers write that the organization cooperated well. Other rules have recently been introduced to better handle abuse cases. For example, a perpetrator-victim confrontation is no longer mandatory. But in practice, little has changed according to those involved. Outside world like satan The Jehovah's Witnesses are a "Christian-fundamentalist end-time movement" with its own logic and norms and values, which - according to the report published by researchers from Utrecht University on Thursday - seem to "deviate to some extent" from current norms and norms in the society. Worldwide there are more than 8.5 million followers, according to the organization itself. In the Netherlands there are almost 30,000. They believe that humanity is in the "end time," the final phase before God intervenes and all non-Jehovahs are destroyed. The organization has a strict hierarchy, in which men are leading. At the top is the New York-based Governing Body, formed by eight veterans. Criticism of this is, according to an (ex) follower, "comparable to a North Korean who criticizes Kim Jong-un." This includes the Watchtower Society, an organization that manages its members worldwide, also from New York. The Dutch branch is located in Emmen. "Circular overseers" regularly visit Jehovah municipalities. Elders make the service within the congregation. They also do justice. Children usually attend regular schools, but performance is not highly regarded. VWO is sometimes discouraged. The "cleansing code" prohibits blood transfusions, celebrating Christmas, unnecessary contacts with non-Jehovahs and participation in civil activities, among other things. The individual is the property of the community. For those who do not comply with this, there is a risk of exclusion, which amounts to a "spiritual death certificate". Criticism from the outside world is often seen as a test. An interviewee told the researchers: “The outside world is Satanist. Only for members of the community (...) does a resurrection follow after the world has perished at Armageddon. " Another (former) Jehovah: “This committee of inquiry strengthens the core of Jehovah's witness belief. The idea is that there will be natural disasters and the Jehovah's Witnesses will be prosecuted as a harbinger of the Armageddon (..) For Jehovah's Witnesses you are the proof that they have the truth. "
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Dutch State secretary reaction about abuse report and argumentation judge
by Gorbatchov inreaction of state secretary and arguments of judge about report jw abuse in the netherlands.
minister dekker: report on jehovah's sketches "extremely worrying" picture
the report on the extent of sexual abuse within the community of jehovah's witnesses paints an extremely worrying picture.
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Gorbatchov
There is no escape at the moment, even at McDonalds this afternoon:
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Dutch State secretary reaction about abuse report and argumentation judge
by Gorbatchov inreaction of state secretary and arguments of judge about report jw abuse in the netherlands.
minister dekker: report on jehovah's sketches "extremely worrying" picture
the report on the extent of sexual abuse within the community of jehovah's witnesses paints an extremely worrying picture.
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Newspaper: JW top lawyer Shane Brady handles Duch court case, highest level jw.org involvement
by Gorbatchov innewspaper stated that the highest jw.org lawyer handles the dutch court case.
so the highest level is involved.. the report of trouw, nationwide newspaper:.
the way jehovah's witnesses deal with sexual abuse is traumatic for victims.
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Gorbatchov
Newspaper stated that the highest jw.org lawyer handles the Dutch court case. So the highest level is involved.
The report of Trouw, nationwide newspaper:
The way Jehovah's Witnesses deal with sexual abuse is traumatic for victims. Researchers from Utrecht University conclude that based on the stories of 751 members and former members of the religious society. An attempt to keep that investigation out of the open ended in court on Thursday afternoon. Marinde van der Breggen & Rianne Oosterom23 January 2020, 17:25 Of the people who participated in the study, 292 people experienced abuse themselves. It is striking that nine people say that the abuse still takes place today. According to the investigators, the "formalistic system" used by the Jehovah's Witnesses does not as yet provide guarantees that reports of abuse are being dealt with adequately.
Within the society, reports of abuse are usually handled internally by a committee of elders, male leaders. Such a committee only comes when there are two witnesses to the abuse, or the perpetrator has known. If that is not the case, the matter is left "in Jehovah's hands." Three-quarters of the victims did not adequately state how their case was handled after they had uncovered it. Of all the victims who answered that question, nearly 60 percent gave the Witness approach a score of 1. Two thirds of the victims who did go to the police were satisfied with how they were helped there. The most commonly given report mark there is a 10. The findings of the research group, which was led by Professor of Social Psychology Kees van den Bos, correspond to the conclusions that Trouwt drew in a series of publications in 2017. It already showed that victims of abuse often receive insufficient help and perpetrators of abuse often freely which creates a dangerous situation for children. Victims experience no recognition for what has happened to them, which means that the way they are treated is often a second trauma to them, the researchers write. They state that the rules of the Jehovah's Witnesses state that much attention must be paid to the victims, but that in practice much more attention is paid to the alleged perpetrator. "Many interventions in the community are aimed at keeping that person within the community." Victim Marianne de Voogd, who earlier in Trouw told about the abuse at the age of 13 by a man from her municipality, is very happy with the outcome of the investigation. She experienced no support whatsoever when her abuse case was dealt with internally. "This means that the Jehovah's Witnesses can no longer put me away like a liar." Closed character The characteristics of the Jehovah community, such as the strong male hierarchy, the closedness of the community and the strict sexual morality contribute to the painful experience of victims, the researchers noted in in-depth interviews with ten (former) members of the society . According to the researchers, the closedness prevents transparent handling of abuse. They call on the community of Jehovah's Witnesses to set up an internal hotline for victims of abuse, "with good knowledge of the matter and the internal and external routes that victims can walk" and to report annually on the activities of this hotline , but fellow believers and society. The researchers also want a cultural shift - more openness and transparency about sexual abuse - in which women also have a clear role to play. The report was sent to the House of Representatives with an accompanying letter from Minister Dekker. He speaks of a "very worrying image" and already urged the board of Jehovah's Witnesses Netherlands in December to adopt the recommendations. In particular the recommendation to set up a hotline. According to the minister, the board refused because they did not see the need for such a hotline. Interim relief The investigation was commissioned by Minister Sander Dekker for legal protection after the Witnesses themselves refused to conduct an independent investigation. The Scientific Research and Documentation Center (WODC) outsourced the assignment to Utrecht University. It was the first time in the Netherlands that the government launched such a study into a religious organization. The researchers set up an online hotline, conducted in-depth interviews, studied sexual abuse policies and looked at similar investigations in Australia and the UK. The Jehovah's Witnesses first cooperated in the research of the university, but tried to stop the publication at the last minute by bringing summary proceedings. They find the report scientifically and factually incorrect and call the results "defamatory". They flew in for the case with the assistance of Shane Brady, a lawyer employed by the international Watchtower who handles cases for the Jehovah's Witnesses from Russia to Canada. This afternoon it appeared in the court of Utrecht that the judge did not agree with the Witnesses' request, because he considered abuses in society more important than the possible reputation damage of the Jehovah's Witnesses. The judge takes it seriously that it is not a random publication, but an investigation wanted by the House of Representatives.
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Dutch State secretary reaction about abuse report and argumentation judge
by Gorbatchov inreaction of state secretary and arguments of judge about report jw abuse in the netherlands.
minister dekker: report on jehovah's sketches "extremely worrying" picture
the report on the extent of sexual abuse within the community of jehovah's witnesses paints an extremely worrying picture.
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Gorbatchov
Reaction of state secretary and arguments of judge about report jw abuse in The Netherlands
Minister Dekker: Report on Jehovah's sketches "extremely worrying" picture The report on the extent of sexual abuse within the community of Jehovah's Witnesses paints an extremely worrying picture. That is what Minister Sander Dekker of Legal Protection says. "Victims of sexual abuse feel insufficiently heard, ignored, stigmatized and isolated." Sander van Mersbergen 01-01-20, 16: 18Last update: 17:01
The minister is severely disappointed in the church. He first refused to investigate the subject himself, and then did not want to set up a hotline for victims. ,, To my displeasure, the board reacted negatively to this. Instead of focusing on creating more openness and recognition for the position of victims within the community, it denied the need for this. "
"Every board of an organization, including the community of Jehovah's Witnesses, which shows signs of sexual abuse, I expect that they will do everything they can to prevent sexual abuse. This is especially true with regard to children. As Minister for Legal Protection, it therefore touches me that so many vulnerable victims felt that they were on their own, had not experienced recognition, and had not, or only recently, found their way to justice and official aid agencies. " Public The report on sexual abuse among Jehovah's Witnesses is just being made public. The judge in Utrecht ruled that that was allowed. The church wanted to stop publication. According to the Jehovah's, the investigation is scientifically and factually incorrect, defamatory and very offensive. "The report wrongly attempts to justify the claim that Jehovah's Witnesses are a closed community and require special government intervention, including supervision of their children," write Jehovah's lawyers. The court finds that a prohibition is only justified if there are special circumstances. This is a report about a widely shared healthcare. The report must lead to political decision-making. That makes the report very important for society, he says. He also believes that the scientific quality of the publication is not under discussion and that the researchers are also transparent about the limitations. Judges are unsuccessful on most points by the judge. According to him, the investigators correctly state that the Jehovah's witnesses form a closed community. The judge also does not think that the researchers conclude that abuse is more common among the Jehovah's than elsewhere. According to the church, they did and that is a false claim. Serious problem Earlier today, this site reported on the results of the research at Utrecht University, which was commissioned by Minister Sander Dekker. It states that Jehovah's Witnesses have a serious problem with regard to sexual abuse, that they do not (or reluctantly) report allegations about this to the police and need "a sharpened state investigation" because they are a "closed community." Victims of sexual abuse among Jehovah's Witnesses who reported it are very negative about the handling of their complaint. Three quarters of the reporters gave an insufficient indication of how their complaint was handled, the most given figure was even 1. The researchers received no fewer than 751 reports. Prior to the hearing, the judge indicated that he regretted that information from the case leaked.
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Some of the Dutch investigation conclusions leaked
by Gorbatchov in#title error changed.
this is the news report:.
researchers: place jehovah’s under stricter state control
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Gorbatchov
Report on abuse at Jehovah's may be made public The report on sexual abuse by Jehovah's Witnesses may be made public. The court in Utrecht has just determined that. The church wanted to stop publication. Sander van Mersbergen 01-01-20, 16: 18Last update: 16:43
According to the Jehovah's, the investigation is scientifically and factually incorrect, defamatory and very offensive. "The report wrongly attempts to justify the claim that Jehovah's Witnesses are a closed community and require special government intervention, including supervision of their children," write the Jehovah's lawyers.
The court finds that a prohibition is only justified if there are special circumstances. This is a report about a widely shared healthcare. The report must lead to political decision-making. That makes the report very important for society, he says.
He also believes that the scientific quality of the publication is not under discussion and that the researchers are also transparent about the limitations. Judges are unsuccessful on most points by the judge. According to him, the investigators correctly state that the Jehovah's witnesses form a closed community. The judge also does not think that the researchers conclude that abuse is more common among the Jehovah's than elsewhere. According to the church, they did and that is a false claim.
Serious problem Earlier today, this site reported on the results of the research at Utrecht University. It states that Jehovah's witnesses have a serious problem with regard to sexual abuse, that they do not (or reluctantly) report allegations about this to the police and need "a sharpened state investigation" because they are a "closed community". The researchers received no fewer than 751 reports. Prior to the hearing, the judge indicated that he regretted that information from the case was leaking.
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Some of the Dutch investigation conclusions leaked
by Gorbatchov in#title error changed.
this is the news report:.
researchers: place jehovah’s under stricter state control
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Gorbatchov
#title error changed. This is the news report:
Researchers: place Jehovah’s under stricter state control Jehovah's Witnesses have a serious problem of sexual abuse, do not (or reluctantly) report allegations about this to the police and need "a sharpened state investigation" because they are a "closed community." That is the conclusion of a report that Utrecht University will release tomorrow. The researchers received no fewer than 751 reports. Sander van Mersbergen 23-01-20, 03:00
This is evidenced by the summons of the summary proceedings that the Jehovah's brought against the publication of the investigation yesterday. This summons is in the hands of this newspaper. "The UU report wrongly seeks to justify the claim that Jehovah's Witnesses are a closed community and require special government intervention, including supervision of their children," write Jehovah's lawyers. Three-quarters of the victims of abuse within the Church of the Jehovah's Witnesses feel that they have received insufficient help from the Church. In the survey, 751 respondents shared a story about sexual abuse. Almost 300 people (292 to be precise) did this for themselves, 459 respondents reported abuse of someone in their environment. Reporting point The document also shows that the researchers, who work on behalf of Minister Dekker of Legal Protection, believe that there should be a hotline for sexual abuse within the church. An annual report should be made on the way in which that contact point deals with these reports. Another striking fact: according to the summons, the researchers suggest that the education inspectorate should better monitor the school performance of Jehovah children. They would be lower than might be expected based on their capacities. "So to speak because the parents want the child to be more actively involved in his / her church community." The Jehovah’s Witnesses think that is unfair. "Such supervision is not recommended for children raised in other religions, and there is no evidence that children of Jehovah's Witnesses perform worse on average than other children in Dutch schools. That would be surprising, given our own experience that children of Jehovah's primary and secondary education witnesses perform better than average in other countries and that the literature of Jehovah's witnesses urges parents to ensure that children meticulous school obligations. " Elder The researchers received 751 reports, but it is possible that the same people made several reports. The questionnaire was anonymous. In any case, the number of reports is considerably higher than the number that the Reclaimed Voices foundation, which represents the interests of victims of abuse, previously collected: there were 300. In total, Jehovah's in the Netherlands have around 30,000 members. Just over half of the reports (52 percent) were made by people who no longer belong to the church. Of the reports, 4 percent is about abuse by an elder from the church. The majority took place outside the church, in family circles or at home with members of the church. The Jehovahs argue on that basis that the abuse was primarily non-institutional. They also find it unjust that the abuse by the elders is directly linked to their religion. "No previous study in the Netherlands, certainly not a study commissioned by the government, is based on such a discriminatory definition of" sexual abuse, "the only requirement being that the alleged victim or alleged perpetrator is a supporter of a certain believe".
Researchers at Utrecht University make a firm judgment about how to deal with sexual abuse within the community of Jehovah's Witnesses. Marianne de Voogd (56) was abused by an elder as a young teenager, and is happy with that judgment. "We can no longer be dismissed as liars." A survivor, she calls herself conscious. No victim, she no longer wants that role. Marianne de Voogd has mastered sexual abuse in her youth. "I could have been in the gutter with a syringe in my arm." But that is not the case, certainly not. De Voogd (56) is now a cruise manager. In March she boarded again, for a trip on the Portuguese river Douro. She is already busy arranging everything, but apart from the departure date of that cruise there is another day in her diary, and that day has arrived today. Researchers from Utrecht University wrote a report about abuse among the Jehovah's Witnesses, the main outcomes of which are in the hands of this newspaper. Jehovah's Witnesses have a serious problem of sexual abuse, do not (or reluctantly) report allegations about this to the police, and need "a sharpened state investigation" because they are a "closed community." "I really hope that this ensures that we are no longer put away as liars," says De Voogd. She was thirteen when she was abused. The perpetrator was an elder from her church in Meppel, with whom she and her peers regularly came to visit. He taught her - behind a tree - how that went, such a French kiss. He put his hands in places where they didn't belong - and hers too. The man did the same for a friend of Marianne's.
Managers The story came out. The man was subjected to the Jehovah's Witnesses' own legal system. He confessed guilt and lost his position as an elder. In the eyes of the church, that was the end of the matter. Marianne just had to learn to live with her torment, the church leaders thought. She saw how, after a while, the man again had children under his care. ,, I am not saying that child abuse is more common in Jehovah's. Wherever children go, there is danger. But if something like this happens at a sports club, the police are added. With Jehovah's, it is dismissed internally, and is called a "sin." But there is quite a difference between sin and pedosexual behavior, isn't it? ” Just like every former Witness, De Voogd has struggled with her release process. At the age of 17 she left the church forced to come back at the age of 31. Living without family, it just couldn't be. She has since left the church, just like one of her brothers. Another brother is still "inside". Bad feeling Marianne knows how difficult it is to rebel against a body that determines your entire life, which is your entire life. That is why she hopes that the university's report can break things open. ,, It is not forbidden to go to the police now, but you are told that you get a very bad feeling about it. You do not declare a brother, that is the motto. I think that children who are affected should be helped better. Elders must be forced to report, if they hear of abuse cases. " The story of De Voogd was brought out in 2017 by Dagblad Trouw. Opposite that newspaper, two former elders of the church in Meppel confirmed her story. The publication in Trouw ultimately formed the direct reason for Utrecht University research, in combination with alarming stories about abuse within the movement from other countries. She has shared her story with researchers from Utrecht University, and she has also reported on behalf of a friend and on behalf of her father, who was abused in the 1950s. ,, I hope that Minister Dekker will intervene on the basis of the report. Take away the status of church and the associated tax breaks. In the end, it's just a publisher of booklets and magazines. " Ultimately, she says, she doesn't seek publicity to throw mud. ,, My reproach comes from my family, but it is not at all. I want people who are still in it, or who doubt whether they will get out, give the feeling that they are not alone. Maybe I can just give them the support they need. ”