The two witness rule becomes a very delicate subject when child abuse becomes involved. I'm convinced that the WTS as an entity is more concerned about keeping it's reputation(or what's left of it) intact more than it is in getting to the bottom of a crime or sin that has been committed.
The elders on the other hand, for the most part, want to do the right thing. Unfortunately, they have been hoodwinked by the WTS into believing that the WTS rules or policies are God's rules or policies. They then follow these rules, sometimes going beyond what even the WTS decrees, thinking they have God's approval and spirit. How many here were once elders and have admitted to towing the WTS line without question? Once their eyes were opened they realized how they were wrong and feel bad about it. I think that a good majority of elders still in would feel the same way once they realized they were duped.
I'm not excusing elders for their part, but let's remember that any fight with a body of elders over a judicial matter, whether it's child abuse or something else, is not just a fight with a group of men, it's a fight with a multi-million dollar publishing company with lawyers out the ying-yang. Make it difficult for the locals, then the big dogs get called and they make it a real fight, one that the average person would lose, not because they were wrong but because they can't afford the lawyers.
We need to learn to pick and choose our battles well. Fighting a JC meeting over smoking or fornication is probably not worth the effort, but when children's lives become involved, then it's time to do what's necessary to protect the innocent children from being further abused by sexual predators or manipulated by a power-hungry corporation.
