Imagine for a moment that you are a child. For years you have been part of this lovely community and it's full of people who smile a lot and do lots of stuff for each other. [It's a façade]
Imagine that they have a hope for a much better world than this one full of wars, pestilence and famine. You could have a pet tiger in that future.
Imagine that the community has rules in place. One of the communities rules is that you must be in subjection to men. A few other rules are, no smoking, no drinking alcohol to excess, no fornication, adultery and so on; things you can be kicked out of the community for. Another one of the communities rules are, you cannot have friends out with our community because they are bad, they're evil. They are not to be trusted.
Imagine that same community spies on you and makes sure you are not breaking any rules because they feel it their duty to do so, otherwise they may have blood on their hands.
Imagine that same community withholds certain medical treatments for children which could save their life.
Imagine that if you ever leave or get kicked out of that community, you will lose your friends, your family, your whole social construct and those you once closely associated with and even maybe your home and or your job.
Now imagine as that child that you were abused. You were told to inform the leaders of the community everything that ever happened to you. So you went to the leaders and they did nothing. They wrote it down, sealed it in a blue envelope and sent it to the headquarters of the community. Meanwhile they told you to be quiet because they did not want their good name blackened. If you heard a child alleging abuse, what would you as an adult do? Would you stay quiet?
I did, for some time because I was told to. Because as part of my community, you did as you were told, no questions. Until something snapped. I had, had enough. I had enough of the control. I left the community. I was shunned. Around 6 months after my departure I was informed that what had happened to me was a crime and should be reported to the police. I was still within my statute of limitations and that is exactly what I did.
To find out that it was and still is a global policy keeping myself and many other survivors silent, was and still is heart breaking. The "communities" or rather should I say religious organisations, need to be forced to change. The particular religious organisation I am speaking of will never change willingly. That enforcement can only come from the government. I am asking the government to investigate these religious organisations, not to be anti-religious. Not to be hateful towards people who are members, but to ask for something to change. The policy my former religious community has in place for cases of CSA is not fit for purpose. The policy literally does "Sweep this issue under the rug" They do not contact police when an allegation of abuse is heard by their leadership. The organisation I was raised in has the same response to every single person who has went to the media that they "do not shield perpetrators and any suggestion that they do is false" - this is gaslighting, insinuating that I and many other survivors are liars.
I am asking each and everyone of you to think, what if it was you? I am asking that it no longer gets swept under the rug.
Please sign my petition. I know all UK citizens can sign and Australian citizens as well. I am not too sure about other countries, however, you can try. If you can't sign it, please share and if you sign it, please share anyway.
Thanks.
petitions.parliament.scot/petitions/PE1905