Cc Initial Trial with airSlate SignNow

Cc initial trial

[Music] in November 2012 Australian ex Prime Minister Julia Gillard proposed a Royal Commission to investigate institutional responses to child sexual abuse they covered a range of institutions including schools churches and sports clubs in a total of 57 public hearings recording the testimonies of nearly 7,000 abused individuals around 64 percent of whom were male and 10% of whom said it was the first time they told anyone about their abuse there would be testimonies from people like Hugh whose abused around age 10 by a scout leader who after gaining his parents trust had him over for parties where boys were plied with marijuana and alcohol and molested and like Margaret who was 11 when she was abused at a Salvation Army Children's Home by a church captain and not only molested children but orchestrated their abuse of each other to conduct the Commission's investigation a panel of six commissioners was appointed headed by Justice Peter McClelland a former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New South Wales and assistant commissioner for the Independent Commission Against Corruption in May 2015 the Commission began to investigate case 29 of their public hearings which concerned responses to child sexual abuse within the Jehovah's Witness organization assisting counsel for the Commission was the formidable anger Stewart QC in a video called concealing abuse I looked at how the Jehovah's Witness organized responded to real-life allegations of child sexual abuse against its members and how its policies tend to protect the abuser for instance even if they fully believe the allegations made against a member the congregation's judicial and spiritual leaders known as elders won't take any action unless there are at least two witnesses to the abuse which is unlikely in view of the private nature of sexual abuse or the abuser confesses voluntarily which is again unlikely even when these exacting demands are met justice is far from guaranteed while the organization possesses the judicial apparatus to eject molesters from congregations it repeatedly fails to use it in a form of excommunication known as disfellowshipping individuals judged to be unrepentant sinners are completely shunned by all members including family but individuals found guilty of molestation can avoid this fate just by apologizing if they express repentance to their congregations elders they can simply be reproved all this entails is an announcement being made to their congregation that they've been reprimanded for an unspecified transgression and that's it they'll be left in the congregation risking further molestation and the constant retraumatization of the individuals they've abused who often feel forced out of their own congregation these kinds of misguided policies served to protect abusers and punish the abused through its in-depth investigation of individual cases the Australian royal commission would expose a daunting maze of unthinkable additional hurdles faced by sexually abused children raised in the Jehovah's Witness organization the Commission focused on the experiences of two individuals abused by members of the organisation for anonymity the individuals were codenamed...