Sunday 24 March 2013

Bob Key, support, And A Recognised Formula.

One would have hoped that in light of the Jimmy Savile "reign of terror," and the whole Jersey Child Abuse cover up, lessons might have been learnt, when it came to dealing with vulnerable abuse victims (alleged or otherwise)? This clearly doesn't appear to be the case.

Below is the content of an e-mail sent to "The Christian Community," and others, along with one of its attachments, the other attachment (template letter) is published on Rico Sorda's Blog HERE.

Regular readers will be aware that the Dean of Jersey (Bob Key) was suspended by the Bishop of Winchester (Tim Dakin) as a result of the Dean's alleged mishandling of a Safeguarding issue concerning a complaint from a vulnerable parishioner of alleged abuse which we have reported on HERE and HERE.

The suspension (or not) has raised some huge constitutional issues between the church and the crown which have been very well covered by former Health Minister Stuart Syvret HERE. Former Deputy, Human Rights Campaigner, and 30 year MET Police Veteran Bob Hill has also reported on this case with the treatment of the alleged abuse victim being his focus and is a must read which can be read HERE.

The e-mail/letter below, in our opinion, demonstrates that nothing has been learnt  from the Savile and Haut de la Garenne atrocities, here in Jersey, indeed the very same culture that allowed/enabled the abuse to carry on for decades is as strong now as it ever was.

For those who have followed the Haut de la Garenne Child Abuse cover up you will recognise the formula employed to discredit the investigation and the investigator(s) and not least the victims. This is usually done through our State Media.

Readers might recall Channel Television winning an award for little more than a cut and paste job concerning the expenses of the Jersey Child Abuse Investigation (Operation Rectangle) which was seen as "A Kick In The Teeth" by some Abuse Victims/Survivors as published HERE.

The discredited, and disgraced, BBC, in our opinion, has also played its part, not so much in what it HAS reported but equally as important in what it HASN'T reported as demonstrated HERE and HERE.

Then we have Jersey's only "news"paper who spent a great deal of its time, in our opinion, doing whatever it could to discredit "Operation Rectangle" and its investigators as exposed in a damming report, a link to which can be found HERE.

Where in all of this has the support for the victims been?

So here (below) we have, what we see to be, a continuation of the "recognised formula" where there appears to be little support for the alleged abuse victim, full support for those who allegedly failed her, and an attack on those who tried/are trying to support her.

"Dear All
Attached to this e-mail you will find two documents.
The first is a summary of our issues and concerns with some points to raise in a letter to the Bishop, copied to the Archbishop, addresses supplied.
Secondly there is a letter that you can just add your name and address to and send if you prefer.
I urge you to act as we have a powerful collective voice in the Church, please do not leave this to other people!!

Also it matters not what denomination you are as Bob is the only overtly Christian voice representing us all in the States and I believe that cross denominational support adds strength to the case.

Please therefore not only write your own letter or sign and send ours but send this on to all your contacts, or print it off and hand it out to those who don't have e-mail.

Together we can make a difference!

Finally, please pray for all concerned in this unhappy situation, for
truth and justice to prevail and for a swift reconciliation.

In Christ


xxxxxxx"


A people’s response to the suspension of the Dean, Bob Key

Many of us have been shocked and confused by the recent suspension of Bob Key, the Dean of Jersey. For many of us in the Christian Community in Jersey, Bob has long been a pivotal member – a devoted leader, a compassionate pastor, a wise advisor and a faithful minister of the gospel. Indeed Bob seems to embody the description of the man of God in Micah 6 ‘ to act justly, and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.’

A number of people have also asked how you can help – who you can write to and what you can say to express your support for Bob. This letter aims to clarify some issues that are being discussed and to ask you to show your support for Bob by writing a letter to the Bishop of Winchester copied to the Archbishop of Canterbury. Some points you may wish to include in a letter are set out at the end of the email.

Issues and concerns

There are a number of issues and concerns that have emerged in the days following the Dean’s suspension. Set out below are some of these, with some comments which you may find of use.

Reason for suspension: There has been some misrepresentation of the reasons why Bob has been suspended. At no point is Bob in any way suspected of behaving inappropriately towards this vulnerable adult. Indeed, at no time in Bob’s long ministry has there ever been the slightest suggestion of inappropriate conduct. The investigation and subsequent suspension are related solely to alleged irregularities in the way the investigation was handled.

Cooperation: It has been said in the review, and in the Diocese’s press release, that Bob did not cooperate with the review. This is categorically not the case. Reading the review you could easily infer that Bob did not speak with the reviewer – on the contrary he met with the reviewer on two separate occasions as requested, for several hours. At all times Bob was open and participated willingly. He was reserved in responding at times where it was not within his authority to disclose information, but the accusations about his failure to cooperate are damaging and untrue.

Failure to act: The review and press reports have stated that Bob failed to act quickly and appropriately in dealing with the allegations made. Again this is untrue. As soon as Bob received the allegation he began to investigate it. I am sure you know from personal experience of Bob that he is a man of great pastoral capability with a gracious manner and a keen concern for justice. Bob took this matter very seriously, acted swiftly and was at all times extremely concerned to ensure that the complaint was dealt with appropriately. It is easy in hindsight to pick holes in the order and timing of particular actions.

Legality of suspension: It is not at present clear whether the Bishop’s actions are entirely lawful within the island. As you know, Jersey is a separate legal jurisdiction and the Dean of Jersey is a crown appointment. Further the Dean has a specific and particular ceremonial and advisory role in the government of the island. It does not prima facie seem appropriate that the Bishop act to suspend the Dean apparently without sufficient consultation and agreement with the appropriate parties.

Failures of process: Throughout this process there has been little, if any, pastoral support for Bob and his wife Daphne through what has been a particularly difficult and challenging experience. The way Bob has been treated is unkind and disrespectful in the extreme and has not in any way followed either good practice or common humanity. Bob was not given a draft of the review, was not given an opportunity to respond and comment on the factual accuracy of the review, indeed he had no opportunity to see or read the review before it was published on the Winchester website.

Response

If you would like to write a letter in support of the Dean here are a few points you might like to consider including. In addition a draft letter is attached for convenience. Please feel free to write separately, use the letter as it is, or amend it to include any other points you would like to raise with the Archbishop.

· Character of the Dean: The Dean is well known in the island as a man of integrity, wisdom, and compassion who has a real concern to preach the gospel of Jesus and support the Christian community in Jersey. He is very well loved and respected and an important leader in our society here and this suspension has been very damaging both to the Christian community and to the cause of the gospel in Jersey.

· Importance of safeguarding: it is important to take issues of safeguarding seriously and distressing to learn that a vulnerable member of our community has been damaged through the course of these events. All Christians in Jersey would affirm the importance of appropriate and effective procedures to ensure that these things do not occur, and are properly dealt with if they do.

· Heavy handed response: The suspension of the Dean appears to be very heavy handed in the circumstances – there is no evidence of an attempt to balance the perceived procedural failures against the very many years of faithful ministry in Jersey and elsewhere. Publishing the review on the internet and issuing press releases containing strong accusations against the Dean does not seem to be a biblical or brotherly way to handle the matter. No space has been given in the review or the press releases to the long service the Dean has rendered to the gospel and the church throughout his career and in recent years his dedicated service to Jersey.

· Unfair bias: the review and subsequent press releases appear to be unfairly biased against the Dean – the review appears to be very concerned with the failings of the Dean as an individual rather than the overall adequacy or otherwise of the procedures and the responsibilities of all parties involved to handle these matters. Indeed the review seems to be very personal – which has very significantly and unhelpfully undermined trust in the Bishop and the Diocese. Further the press releases by the Diocese, while nominally asserting that the action taken is a neutral measure, contain a number of allegations about the Dean’s behaviour in relation to the review which are clearly not neutral.

· Integrity of the review: the way the review has been approached is a matter for grave concern – there are repeated and heavy references to the ‘Interim Report on the Visitation of the Diocese of Chichester 2012’ and the ‘Review of the Diocese of Chichester 2012’ which were published some four years after these events. The layout of the review regularly implies that the Dean failed to implement these recommendations. This appears unreasonable given the disparity in dates between the reports (published 2012) and the events being investigated (2008) and would therefore seem to undermine the credibility and reliability of the review itself.

· Christian representation: the Dean of Jersey is the voice of all Christians in Jersey – his role in the States of Jersey and the respect and attention given to his views mean that he is able to express the Christian viewpoint in many areas of our civic life. The suspension of the Dean means that this key ministry has been summarily cut off and all Christians, from across the denominations, have been disenfranchised in Jersey.

· Justice: all parties in this affair should be treated with justice, including the Dean, which does not at present appear to be the case. The Dean’s suspension should be revoked imminently and steps taken to repair and restore relationships between the island churches and the Diocese of Winchester.

It would be wonderful if you feel you are able to write a letter in support of Bob and to encourage others to do the same.

Please address your letter to the Bishop of Winchester and copy it to the Archbishop of Canterbury and your own minister (if applicable). Please feel free to make any or all of the points above, and anything else you consider to be important. Please also pass this on to others you know and encourage them to write as well. The attached letter can be printed and name and address added by hand if that is easier for some. It is probably best to email a copy of your letter to the Bishop and Archbishop, and then, if you can, to send a signed hard copy in the post in order to ensure that as many letters as possible are received as soon as possible. The Bishop’s and Archbishop’s email addresses and postal addresses are included in the attached letter.

Thank-you for taking the time to read this lengthy letter – please take action to support Bob and ensure that our voice is heard. Please feel free to forward this email or share it with anyone who you feel might be interested and prepared to support the Dean.(END)

We ask our readers to show support for the alleged abuse victim by writing to the Bishop of Winchester in support of his actions, in suspending the Dean, or withdrawing his commission, making it clear that the good people of Jersey want to see an end to this "recognised formula" and to start putting the safety, well being, and protection of vulnerable people as their priority.

Alternatively readers can leave comments here in support of "HG" and Bishop Tim Dakin's decisive action as the Winchester Diocese will be reading it/them.

We also ask the question, when there is this kind of campaign for those who allegedly failed "HG," what chance does she stand of gaining justice and some kind of closure, while this recognised formula continues to prevail?


The Bishop can be contacted by letter at:

The Bishop of Winchester

The Rt Revd Timothy Dakin

Wolvesey

Winchester SO23 9ND

He can be e-mailed at:

bishop.tim@winchester.anglican.org

Readers on Twitter can also Tweet this posting to the Winchester Diocese 

















51 comments:

  1. This poor woman reported abuse and was deported from the island by our bent court system and the church people (inJersey) go on a campaign to support Bob Key? Very Christian of them and the Jersey way in full flow. I support HG and Bishop Dakin.

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    1. E mail your comments direct to the Bishops bishop.tim@winchester.anglican.org perhaps if we all do it will draw attention to the victim she was treated to the full JERSEY WAY appalling behavior by those who control our Island

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  2. I.would live to hear Ian le marquands thoughts on this, the letter could easily be written on behalf of graham power. Typical of the jersey way.

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    1. Yes there was no church outcry when the Chief of Police was illegally suspended during the Child Abuse Investigation, yet when it happens to "one of their own" it's a travesty. Furthermore the silence of the whole church community during the Child Abuse atrocities has been deafening. When has the church ever campaigned in support of the Abuse Victims/Survivors?

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    2. Those of us who genuinely seek truth and justice for victims must not allow ourselves to be drawn into a McCarthy style witch hunt.

      To do so will harm our aim of protecting the vulnerable.

      Justice will be served when all parties have been given a fair hearing.

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    3. Agree entirely there should be no witch-hunt. Unfortunately I can't agree that justice will be done in Jersey anyway. There are serious questions to be answered concerning the deportation of "HG" and how she was represented (or not) in court.

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    4. I would suggest that we all e mail the Bishop with our views to give some balance to the rubbish in support of the dean bishop.tim@winchester.anglican.org I cannot do links perhaps some one out there can help lets get some balance here give the views of the man in the street some thing our dean has no feeling for

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    5. VFC, The apparent difference in the church outrage over the suspension of the Dean and the suspension of Chief of Police Graham Power, is that one stems from the failure to protect the vulnerable in a prescribed procedural manner, and the latter is due to his deliberate "failure" to overlook the abuse of the vulnerable as his employers demanded, so that false allegations of improper procedure were dredged up.
      "So be it?"

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    6. Bishop Dakin and the C of E will do well to read how the former Chief Police Officer was dealt with when his force were investigating child abuse in Jersey. It might give them a taste of what is to COME!

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  3. I would like to offer my support for HG and Bishop Dakin.

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  4. I offer my full support for HG i hope she is well and is safe. I all so offer my full support to bishop dakin.this sort of thing goes on all to much in jersey.

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  5. It sickens me to think of the way this lady was treated. I have a relative with autism and it truly is difficult, the Jep claims that the alleged victim would" try the patience of a saint,they should be ashamed of themselves,yet again. The above letter does not speak for all christians.




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  6. VFC,

    There is one thing that has not been done here. If these people are prepared to push ordinary church members to support the Dean, they should forgo any right to anonymity.

    Please reveal the name of the signatory of the e-mail.

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    1. The document was sent already anonymised and my "source" does not want to reveal the identity of the author. As mentioned above it is important not to turn this into any kind of a which-hunt against the Dean, or his supporters. This Blog Posting has set out to demonstrate that despite the Savile, HDLG atrocities "The Jersey Way" remains, nothing has changed, no lessons have been learnt and the establishment, and its media, stick to its recognised formula regardless.

      Moreover we hope this Blog Posting will show people across the world that despite our establishment, and its media, there are people who look to support the alleged victim and any victim of abuse rather than campaigning for those who allegedly failed her.

      The document published on here, and the template support letter, on Rico's Blog does even more harm (IMO) to the reputation/image of Jersey and hopefully the support shown to the alleged victim on here will balance that of the support shown to the Dean.

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    2. There is no witch hunt.

      The reason I requested this that it appears that certain groups of people are being co-opted into supporting the Dean WITHOUT THEIR CONSENT.

      And that is one reason why anonymised letters will not do, and the identity of the originator should be publicly available. I would ask your source to reconsider his/her position.

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  7. To reassure your readers, I have been assured that the victim is safe and being looked after by a source I trust.

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    1. One can only hope that is a genuine comment. If so please tell your trusted source that HG has a wealth of support for her here in Jersey, and elsewhere.

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  8. I write in support of HG. She is the innocent party in all this let us not forget. I think it is commendable that the Bishop of Winchester acted as he did and it is very very sad and shameful that the Dean acted so appallingly. The Bishop is a man of God and the Dean has forgotten his heart (if he ever had one). Christianity, humanity and religion is not a Mafia business - and those who think it is do not understand kindness and decency - which is what Jesus preached.

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  9. Further to my comment on 13.41, it was perfectly genuine and I have contacted the source to inform them of the support there is for HG.

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    1. Thank you and if there's anything that we, as Bloggers, (Jersey's only independent media) can do to help HG's case please let us know.

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  10. It stands to reason that the Dean came to Jersey on the same terms as Bill Ogley and Mike Pollard, that was to fit into "The Jersey Way".

    Bill Ogley and Mike Pollard stuck with "The Jersey Way", until their bitter end and were rewarded handsomely for their efforts....

    The Dean is a different kettle of fish because "His Jersey Way", has been exposed by The Bishop Of Winchester!?

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    1. And Mike Bowron not investigating the police man who leaked information to David Rose and the Daily Mail during a live enquiry.

      This is illegal in the UK, Bowron is from the UK maybe he likes the " Jersey Way " and wants to feel important in his shiny new big office in the new police station.

      Go home Mike, and send someone who chases the bad guys.

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  11. Chevalier Blanc24 March 2013 at 19:11

    The Bishop has done the right thing. This is what should have happened over the Child Abuse Case. Here we go agaiun trying to protect the guilty for not doing thr right thing!

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  12. It sounds so trite when Christians ask, "What would Jesus do?" but, it really is the only question Christians need ask themselves here. What kind of moral contortions or deliberate Scriptural misinterpretations they must create to justify the treatment of this vulnerable woman! It won't ever seem justified to Christians outside the Jersey Establishment. Is Jersey's weak and ineffectual religious community being used to justify greater structural independence at the expense of a woman who reached out for well-justified assistance against a known abuser?

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  13. If the Church is not prominent in the in the proactive campaign against the abuse of children and other vulnerable groups and, if the church is not also prominent in the campaign against the cover up of such abuse by those in prominent positions, then the Church must bear it's share of responsibility for the suffering of all future victims and the continued suffering of all past victims.
    In Jersey the Church's record is not good. This failure is part of the problem and part of the reason why child abuse was and has been allowed to continue unchecked in State institutions for so many decades.
    The nature of the relationship between Church and State is fundamental to the understanding of the Church's failings with respect to the abuse of children and other vulnerable groups in Jersey. Where is the leadership, Have we not learnt the lessons of history. Why has the Church been hiding in the shadows?

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  14. when I referred to justice being done in this case.. I meant by the Diocese as I too have little faith in Jersey Justice!!

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    1. We've seen the type of "justice" that Jersey dishes out in the case of "H.G." She went through all the correct channels, Jersey has to offer, in reporting alleged abuse. She finished up penniless, homeless, dragged through the courts and kicked off the island. Then the great and good of the island campaign for the Dean with, what looks to be, total disregard for the plight, wellbeing, or safety of HG. "Jersey Justice" not to be confused with "Justice."

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  15. Lucy Meadows was bullied to death by the "accredited" "professional" "accountable" Mainstream Media. Please sign THIS PETITION?

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  16. Krichefski in Temp Passé again, second time in a month
    ( Fat Man)

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  17. There was a very interesting programme on Radio 4 this afternoon: 'The Human Zoo' on group-think and why we find it so difficult to admit we are wrong. Should be available on iPlayer for a week. The group-think bit described the reaction of the Evangelical clergy in this island perfectly.

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  18. The terms of reference for the the Bishop's Visitation have been made public today. For those unfamiliar with C of E politics, a "Bishops Visitation" only happens when something has gone badly wrong and normal pastoral relations have broken down. In other (non-ecclesiastical) words, someone is in deep shit. If people don't co-operate with this there will be an Archbishop's Visitation - rare, but very, very deep shit. Nice to see robust ToR uninfluenced by crony-ism.

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    1. I followed the link to a page that informs that terms of reference have been published but I could not find the actual publication.

      Where are the terms?

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    2. Sorry, they are attached to press-release so I expected them to be accessible there. No doubt they'll be reported accurately and without bias or comment by the JEP :) I have .pdf but can't attach it.

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    3. The TOR's are on the link Ian has submitted (below).

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    4. Not sure I agree the TOR's are robust which is something that will be getting looked at in the coming days.

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  19. The Church come out fighting....ROUND 2

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    1. Thank you, Ian, saved me a lot of typing!

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    2. We are here to pull together :)

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  20. The Bishop of Winchester has announced a Visitation to Jersey. Surely Bob didn’t expect a kind of Spanish Inquisition!

    [THE CARDINALS BURST IN]

    Cardinal Gladwin: “Nobody expects the SPANISH INQUISTION in Jersey!”

    Cardinal Gladwin: “Our chief weapon is surprise...surprise and fear...fear and surprise.... Our two weapons are fear and surprise...and ruthless efficiency.... Our three weapons are fear, surprise, and ruthless efficiency...and an almost fanatical devotion to Bishop Tim.

    Cardinal Gladwin: “Dean, you are accused of heresy on three counts; heresy by though, heresy by word, heresy by deed and heresy by action.”

    Cardinal Gladwin: “Dean, do you confess?”

    Dean: “I don’t understand what I am accused of? The Deputy Bailiff has advised me to remain silent and anyway you have no constitutional authority to act in this jurisdiction. We make up the Laws as we go along and as we see fit. You must have read the Canons of the Church of England in Jersey we sneaked through the States in 2010? We got rid of the ones your King James I wrote in 1623. Didn’t you get the round-robin email Willy and Bruce drafted? I am a popular and respected member of the community.”

    Cardinal Gladwin: “Ha! Then we shall make you understand! Derogation from safeguarding policies is Heresy”

    Cardinal Gladwin: “You are hereby charged that you did on diverse dates commit heresy against the Holy Church.”

    Cardinal Gladwin: “You have three last chances.”

    Cardinal Gladwin: “Confess! Confess! Confess!”

    Cardinal Gladwin: “Our Terms of Reference are fully Human Rights compliant and we can use torture to extract a confession!”

    Cardinal Gladwin: “Archdeacon Russell, fetch… the COMFY CHAIR!”

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  21. VFC at 25 March 2013 19:14 urges us to sign
    http://action.sumofus.org/a/daily-mail-littlejohn-lucy-meadows/?sub=fb

    Almost 200,000 people have signed which is well on the way to their quarter million target.

    I prefer not to sign on a whim so I googled
    http://psychology.ucdavis.edu/rainbow/html/facts_molestation.html
    (University of California psychology dept.)

    This gave me adequate reassurance and informed (and to some extent changed) my opinions in this area.

    Paedophilia is largely a sexual orientation which is usually totally separate from any other orientations.
    In any case I would have imagined that transgender-to-female would be a low risk group.

    Perhaps they could sack paedophile-excuse David Rose while they are at it ?

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  22. Interesting blog post from an Islander you may not normally read regarding privacy concerns with the police's new "Anonymous Report Form"
    http://tomandshirley.com/28-states-of-jersey-police-website-privacy-concerns

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    1. A very informative post and recommend readers take a LOOK

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    2. Those Police are naughty, naughty boys. What else are they "tracking" then? The author should write to the Chief of Police and to the Minitster for Internal Affairs complaining of their nefarious ways. He can then, like so many others, be classified as "an enemy of Jersey" or some other bs.

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  23. Cops, Lawyers & Judges 'are' the problem with JERSEY JUSTICE.

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  24. it was clearly considered by all concerned that that order was in the best interests both of "HG and those she had abused."

    Correct me if I am wrong but it would seem from this above line, that P Bailhache is calling the abused lady HG, an abuser.

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  25. The church of England has done the right thing.
    If only our states would have done the right thing with our history of Child Abuse but no the estabilshment has tried everything they can to cover up the abuse. Now we see first hand how they go about covering up abuse by standing up and supporting the dean in the way that they have. Head should roll from the very top to the bottom of all those connected with the cover ups.

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