NETHERLANDS: Elders of Jehovah’s Witnesses cannot invoke the right of non-disclosure in sexual abuse case
Elders of Jehovah’s Witnesses from the Northern Netherlands cannot invoke their right of non-disclosure as clergy in the criminal investigation of sexual abuse by a Jehovah’s member from Assen. That was determined by the court in Zwolle on Friday. Originally published in Dutch by Danielle Molenaar on Dagblad van het Noorden on May 8, 2020 […]
BRAZIL: Watch Tower claim raid on premises unlawful
In September 2019, the Branch of Jehovah’s Witnesses and a number of kingdom halls in São Paulo Brazil were raided by the Police, in search of documentary evidence of criminal activities relating to child sexual abuse. The Jehovah’s Witnesses claim that the raid was unlawful. Below is a translation of the Court of Justice determination. […]
Child Sex Abuse in the News
Here you will find an exhaustive list of stories in the media discussing child sex abuse within the Jehovah’s Witnesses. This list is here to highlight to the public and to Jehovah’s Witnesses that the serious problem of child sex abuse within the organization is not isolated to a few kingdom halls, or to only […]
How Jehovah’s Witnesses’ approach to abuse in other countries did improve
The Netherlands is not the first country where the government delves into the abuse policy of Jehovah’s Witnesses. We take a look across the border to see how other countries are tackling the problem with the religious community. Article originally published in Dutch on Trouw by Marinde van der Breggen In the Netherlands it was […]
NETHERLANDS Jehovah’s Witnesses will abide by legal obligation to report sexual abuse”
Originally written by Daniëlle Molenaar and published by Dagblad van het Noorden. The board of Jehovah’s Witnesses will abide by a legal obligation to report child sexual abuse. That is what board member Michael van Ling said in an interview at the national head office in Emmen, the Netherlands. Van Ling looks back on a stormy […]
Victims rate the handling of abuse cases by Jehovah’s Witnesses
Photo – religionnews.com – March 2022 The way Jehovah’s Witnesses deal with child sexual abuse is traumatic for victims. Researchers at Utrecht University conclude this on the basis of 751 stories from members and ex-members of the religious organization. An attempt to keep that investigation out of the open ended in court on Thursday afternoon. […]
Abused Jehovah’s Witnesses judge harshly about internal handling
Originally published in Dutch by NOS nieuws on January 23, 2020. Members of Jehovah’s Witnesses who have experienced sexual abuse within the religious community usually do not report it to the police and are predominantly negative about the internal handling of the abuse. This is evident from a study by Utrecht University into the willingness of […]
Jehovah’s Witnesses want to prevent publication of abuse report
Photo – religionnews.com – March 2022 Originally published in Dutch by NOS nieuws on January 21, 2020. The Dutch branch of the Jehovah’s Witnesses wants to use summary proceedings to prevent publication of a report on abuse within the community, write Het Parool and Dagblad van het Noorden. Utrecht University, to which the authors of […]
Why do Jehovah’s Witnesses not want to report Child Sexual Abuse?
Why are Jehovah’s Witnesses’ leaders reluctant to report child sexual abuse when there are no mandatory reporting laws? This is a question that has confounded judges, lawyers, police, journalists and even members of the religion around the world. In the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, Governing Body member Geoffrey Jackson, stated […]