BBC, Children In Need and 99 Red Balloons.

Fellow Blogger TOM GRUCHY accepted an invitation given to its listeners by Jersey's BBC State Radio yesterday to join them in town to celebrate Children In Need.

Thinking it could be an ideal opportunity for the State Media to engage with Bloggers (Jersey's only independent media) and help promote the charity, Children In Need, Tom Gruchy took down his video camera believing the State Media would seize the opportunity perhaps for viewers to donate money or just generally help generate awareness.

The serious issue of Child Protection/Abuse could be highlighted and the BBC could speak out against it.............

This, alas, was not to be.

Tom Gruchy received a very frosty reception, was made to feel most unwelcome by the BBC Team, and in particular by the Managing Editor Jon Gripton.

Mr. Gruchy offered us the film he took and has sent us a few words to go with it.

“Come down and see us in King Street” was the call from BBC Radio Jersey this morning and “speak with us on–air.”

Not an invitation to be missed so we thought and what a golden opportunity to interview the BBC team for our own blog-site.

After all we all share an interest in “Children in Need” and at the present time with so much going wrong for Auntie in the UK and even here in Jersey we should have expected a warm reception.

After one child abuse scandal after another all around the world we should all want to redress the imbalance in our own ways.

Nobody is perfect of course but following the Jimmy Savile revelations which are so much at the heart of the BBC organisation we would have thought that “child abuse” was a matter needing a much more informed discussion.

Thus we take the view that if the needs of children had been subjected to much more investigative journalism over the past decades then so many could have been spared the agony of mistreatment and abuse.

Having a “fun day” is all very well and we are delighted that so many children and their parents will have participated today but Jon Gripton and his team’s attitude was very disappointing.

No comment has been the official line for far too long alas – and rattling collecting tins rather than the establishment cage lies at the root of the scandal here and around the world….."(END)

It has to be said that the BBC has lost so much trust with the public just recently and one would have thought it would be doing all it could to win back that trust, engage with the online community, send out a message that the BBC are approachable and have nothing to hide......................One would have thought.

The BBC has some serious questions to answer, in light of the Savile allegations and related issues. Not least the suppression of Jersey's Former Police Chief, Graham Power QPM's 62,000 word interim defence case after they reported on the prosecution case against him. Regular readers will know that Mr. Gripton has been in possession of this document since September the 22nd 2011 but he still refuses to publish it or even admit that he's got a copy of it! We all know that he HAS. The BBC has also been sent links to the letter written by David Warcup that led to the (possibly illegal) suspension of Mr. Power, the Met Interim Report, Operation Tuma, the in-camera debate, and more, that have all been leaked to BLOGGERS yet doesn't report on them.

If the BBC is to regain any trust from the public it will need to start taking the issue of Child Abuse seriously. Stop suppressing documents/evidence that could expose alleged abusers and their protectors. Start exposing the culture of concealment that still remains today that allowed Child Abuse to go unpunished for decades in Jersey and elsewhere.

Below are "highlights" of the film taken by Tom Gruchy which makes for uncomfortable viewing yet tragically amusing in places and gives another meaning to the title 99 Red Balloons............Tragic.............So, so tragic.

Mr. Gripton is offered the right of reply should he wish to make contact and arrange an interview.

UnHappy Anniversary (4)

On the 12th of November 2008 Jersey's most Senior Police Officer, Graham Power QPM, was suspended from duty while (because?) his Force were investigating DECADES of institutional child abuse in State run "care" homes in Jersey.

The unprecedented  suspension was carried out, with what appears to be, complete disregard to due process and best practice and saw the end of a highly successful career spanning 42 years.

We Bloggers (Jersey's only independent media) have reported extensively on the Jersey Child Abuse cover-up and related issues exposing the facts that the State Media keep buried in this very dark chapter of Jersey's History.

Speaking of "History" it is said that it (History) is written by the victors which might explain why the State Media don't make mention of this very important date that saw the possibly illegal suspension of Jersey's most Senior Police Officer. It is already being airbrushed out of mainstream media and the Blogs remain the (trusted) source for the documented evidence.

VFC, every year since, has published a Blog Posting, bringing readers attention to, what could be one of the biggest miscarriages of justice (although there is plenty of competition) in Jersey's recent history.

We have asked, this year, for the Former Police Chief to offer us some of his thoughts on this fourth anniversary in order that the history books can be better informed and won't have to rely on the discredited and disgraced "accredited" media for the facts and evidence.

Former Chief Police Officer Graham Power QPM.

"I have been reminded that it is now the fourth anniversary of my suspension from duty and subsequent "dismissal by stealth" from my position as Chief Officer of the States of Jersey Police. Much has happened since that time.   Nevertheless it is encouraging that a wide number of interested parties have continued the fight to obtain justice for the victims of the persistent abuse of vulnerable children which occurred in establishments operated by the Jersey Government. In spite of Establishment efforts to bury the issue it has remained firmly on the political agenda, largely due to the tireless work of a number of individuals committed to searching for the truth and giving the protection of vulnerable children the highest priority. These include the Jersey Citizens Media, a small number of Local Politicians, Investigative Journalists from outside the Island, and the many supporters wordwide who have nothing to gain from their endevours other than the knowledge that they are supporting a just cause. I am aware that much is happening at present and I do not want to distract anyone from their current efforts by re-opening the issues relating to my suspension in any great detail. I would however simply for the record, remind readers what has been established from a number of credible and independent sources and disclosures. Namely, that my suspension was based on falsified documents, fabricated evidence, misleading information provided to States Members and the public by Jersey Ministers, and the testimony of a number of senior individuals who have since been publically discredited.  

The events relating to Jimmy Saville and other revelations have heightened the general awareness of the issue of Historic Child Abuse, and the substantial difficulties which stand in the way of those who attempt to bring abusers to justice.They may also provide a further opportunity to return to the question of whether persons responsible for abuse or for failing to prevent that abuse, remain in positions of authority where they may still constitute a risk to children or the search for justice.  

The "shock and awe" of the suspension was intended to knock the fight out of me and lead to my quiet departure and subsequent silence. Among the many proven failings of those responsible for imposing and maintaining the suspension I think that we can now confidently add a decidedly poor judgement of character and a serious failure to anticipate the likely consequences of their actions. Not exactly the best characteristics for people who claim to be capable of running a government."(END)

We offer an extract from the former Police Chief's sworn AFFIDAVIT and ask how it is that a senior Civil Servant who is a suspect in the Child Abuse Investigation can be offered the protection of the most senior Civil Servant (who was given a £500,000 Golden Handshake) and NOT be suspended from duty, as a neutral act, yet the most senior Police Officer who's force is investigating the abuse and alleged abuser(s) IS suspended and "dismissed by stealth?

From Affidavit.

"19. The third example I have chosen relates to a Strategic Planning Workshop held at the St Pauls Centre on Friday 24th October 2008. The Workshop was attended by a number of senior public servants including myself and the Chief Executive. At the commencement of the workshop the Chief Executive asked for silence and said that he had an announcement to make. He named a senior civil servant who was present. The person named is a suspect in the abuse investigation but has not been suspended. The Chief Executive said that the suspect had his total support and that “if anyone wants to get…….(the suspect)…….they would have to get me first”. This announcement was applauded by some but not all of the persons present. I took it as a further indication of the “in crowd” closing ranks against the “threat” of the abuse enquiry. The Chief Executive later played a significant role in my suspension."(END)

Not withstanding all the shenanigans exposed in Mr. Power's submission (above) readers might be alarmed to know that the Child Abuse suspect mentioned in the affidavit is still in position today with access to children. It might be that he is innocent of any crime but as he has not (Yet) been charged with any offence we may never find out and he must be presumed innocent.

The former Senior Investigating Officer of the Child Abuse Investigation, Lenny Harper, has also told us that he knows of at least four "priority suspects" who are still employed by the States.

Child Abuse suspects still in positions of authority and Police Chief's being dismissed by stealth is not a healthy state of affairs in light of the Savile allegations where he was not brought to justice when the opportunity was there due to people being too scared to speak out. Will we have to wait until abusers are dead before they are exposed? How has Jersey's culture changed since all this abuse was exposed? Who are the ones protected in Jersey, the victims/survivors or the abusers?

We encourage readers to view the links below of the previous three "Unhappy Anniversary's." They are filled with links that together expose, with documented evidence, the ghastly Jersey Administration and culture that STILL exists today.

UnHappy Anniversary one

UnHappy Anniversary two

UnHappy Anniversary three

Jimmy Savile, Haut de la Garenne and the State Media.

Back in February this year (2012) we published a BLOG highlighting a campaign run by Zibby Yates, a courageous survivor of Child Abuse, and taken up by THE GUERNSEY PRESS

Readers might be aware that the Guernsey Press is owned by the same company as Jersey's only "News"paper, the Jersey Evening Post, yet their reporting (or not) on Child Abuse, in our opinion, couldn't be any different. This suggests to us that the agenda of the editors is where the difference lies.

In the Jersey Evening Post we have seen attack, after attack, on the Former Senior Investigating Officer of the Jersey Child Abuse Investigation Mr. Lenny Harper and NO campaigning for the plight of the victims/survivors who suffered at the hands of their abusers for DECADES. This is in stark contrast to their sister paper in Guernsey.

After receiving an e-mail last night with a cutting of the Guernsey Press' latest comment we once more felt that this had to be shared with our readers (below) to highlight the difference in the reporting of both newspapers and how the Guernsey Press, once more, is doing the job its Jersey counterpart SHOULD be doing.


Beasts like Savile don't work alone.Wednesday 31st October 2012, 3:12PM GMT.

"EARLIER this year, a 7,000-plus signature petition was handed to the then-new Home minister as our Voice for Victims campaign to help those who had endured childhood sex abuse came to a successful conclusion.

Since then, there have been other local cases highlighting the scale of the problem – and now there are the daily disclosures about Jimmy Savile, which are, in every sense, off the scale and almost beyond comprehension.

Yet what the unfolding horror illustrates is how these predatory beasts operate, cultivating an acceptable exterior while creating a support network to ensure that their abuse can proliferate undetected. And it happens here.

One of Guernsey’s worst paedophiles is the formerly respected judo teacher Eugene Hughes, who, like Savile, systematically set about destroying the self-confidence of his victims, convincing them that complaint was futile and ensnaring them in the illusion of acceptability that he weaved around himself.

As is now clear following Savile’s death, this is confidence trickery on a sinister and epic scale: how could so many people and institutions be taken in for so long?

In part, it is that cultivated aura of ‘niceness’, that ‘old Jimmy might be a bit odd but he’s no pervert’ response it is designed to trigger. And in part it is due to the network of support that paedophiles build up around them and which will now be examined within the BBC and elsewhere as part of the inquiry process.

Statistically, each abuser will have a group of about 30 people around them, which makes the claims in Jersey that children from Haut de la Garenne were loaned out to rich boatowners particularly disturbing.(Emphasis added)

As we said when we launched our anti-abuse campaign, it is through increased awareness, demanding that the protection of children and help for victims be prioritised and fighting for the adoption of a zero-tolerance approach to these types of crimes that Voice for Victims aims to combat the silence which allows the sexual abuse of children to persist.

Those aims remain just as proportionate and achievable today.

And as the appalling revelations about Savile and others demonstrate, they are more urgently-needed than ever."(END)

When one compares this comment from The Guernsey Press alongside some of the reporting of the Jersey Evening Post's then it is not difficult to see where the priorities lie in the two very different newspapers/Editors.

The Jersey Evening Post appears to believe that how much Lenny Harper spent on a meal in a London restaurant takes priority over campaigning for Abuse Survivors and encouraging its readers to adopt a Zero-Tolerence concerning Child Abuse. One only needs to look HERE to get an idea of the Jersey Evening Post's "journalism" and agenda. Then take note of the words written by the Former Chief Police Officer Graham Power QPM;

"The attempts to divert this debate into discussions concerning the trivia of expense claims, is a scandal of which all involved should be thoroughly ashamed."

Jimmy Savile was invited to Haute de la Garenne and allegedly abused children while he was there. Who invited Savile, not only to the Children's home but to Jersey........So often? Who were his contacts in Jersey? How could children be abused FOR DECADES in Jersey's State run institutions before Lenny Harper and Graham Power came along? Has a powerful paedophile ring been active in Jersey for decades? Why won't ANY of the island's State Media expose the alleged Child Abuse suspects still in position of power/authority today? Why won't BBC Jersey, or ANY of the State Media, publish Graham Power's interim defence case to the Wiltshire allegations? Could decades of Child Abuse have occurred without the complicity of the island's State Media?

Isn't it time that Jersey's "journalists" started getting some of these questions answered? Should there be a "job swap" between the editors of The Guernsey Press and The Jersey Evening Post? What part, if any, has the State Media played in the concealment of paedophilia on this island?

Bloggers (Jersey's only independent media) with documented evidence have torn to shreds the official version of events concerning the decades of Child Abuse which has mostly been ignored by the State Media.........why?

Credit must go to the Guernsey Press, and its editors, for their willingness to rock the boat. Credit must be given for its Zero-Tolerence to Child Abuse and its campaigns for the Abuse Victims/Survivors. 

In the meantime Bloggers (Jersey's only independent media) will continue to ask the questions that should be asked by the State Media in an attempt to protect the vulnerable from the "Predatory Beasts" like Savile and those closer to home! 

This post, once more should demonstrate the need for an independent, Journalist to report on the Jersey Child Abuse scandal and related issues.

Please sign and share the petition to restore the visa of US Journalist LEAH MC GRATH GOODMAN?