Wednesday 22 October 2014

Jersey Child Abuse Inquiry (Jean Neal Guest Posting)




As part of our posts, and interviews, with Abuse Survivor Jean Neil We bring readers an update since she gave live evidence to Jersey's Child Abuse Inquiry.

We have supported, and reported, Jean's brave journey since she first made contact with us back in April 2012 where we were the first to break the story of a little known Jersey "care" home (Grouville Girls Home) PUBLISHED HERE.

After VFC broke the story, back in 2012, the State Media were forced to take note and run with it also as PUBLISHED HERE.

As a result of VFC's coverage of Jean's horrific story she has now been able to make contact with a fellow survivor of the home, after 60-plus years, as a direct result of VFC's involvement as PUBLISHED HERE.

Now that Jean has been through the ordeal of giving evidence to the Inquiry, and due to logistics, Team Voice were unable to interview her, we asked if she would consider submitting a Guest Posting instead. She agreed and we are pleased to offer it below.

"A big thank you VFC for all your support through the Blog programme for me as I have gone through these last two or three years having to put my Jersey Child Abuse story to the authorities.
Obviously what you do is a battle because you and some of the good people of Jersey give the truth and is a threat to the Jersey authorities

On the 2nd of September 2014, whilst on holiday in Jersey I spent three and a half hours giving a written statement to the Independent Jersey Care Inquiry also stating that to save the States of Jersey the cost of bringing me over at a later date I asked would it be possible to give my evidence whilst I was in Jersey but I was told they could not do it and they would have to fly me back to Jersey or I could do it via video link at a later date.

I chose to return to Jersey as I had nothing to hide or be ashamed of and would face the court or whatever I had to go through. My abusers are the guilty ones and the Jersey Authorities and the Jersey Welfare that let us all down are equally as guilty.

The enquiry people wanted me to fly over to Jersey on the first flight out from the UK that would have meant I would have had to be up at 4:00am in order to travel to the airport and catch the flight. The enquiry team then wanted to fly me back home the same afternoon after giving my evidence.

I was surprised the team didn’t see how this could be a great burden and stress on my 79-year-old body so I brought it to their attention and was allowed a stopover in Jersey before flying back home.

I came to Jersey on the Wednesday 1st October and gave evidence the following day. I was at the court from about 9.15am being prompted by the lawyer as to what the procedure would be, told I was not to mention any names and that faces in the photographs I had provided as part of my evidence would be blacked out. I must say I did not expect to go through such an ordeal at the age of 79. I felt the ordeal of having to give such personal details to so many strangers was embarrassing to say the least.

On reflecting when I got home I felt although the Lawyer was gentle with me, I felt that some of the things that I had to enlarge on were uncalled for i.e. the “foo foo washing” surely it was plain enough for people to know what it meant?


This level of personal detail was difficult for me to talk about in such a public court room and I have no idea why the lawyer thought this line of questioning was significant to its enquiry. I recall reading that a witness gave a statement accusing the States Of Jersey of accepting a fifty thousand pound bribe from JIMMY SAVILE but the lawyer didn’t ask the witness about it. How can a “foo foo washer” be more significant than an accusation of a fifty thousand pound bribe?


The ordeal of having to give such personal details at such a public forum got all a bit too much for me and I broke down in tears and asked for a break. The panel agreed to me having a break where I was taken to a separate room and accompanied by a member of the media team attached to the enquiry. With hindsight I can’t see why I was not offered any victim support because I clearly needed it and a media professional is not the ideal person TO CONSOLE A VICTIM OF ABUSE having to relive their most disturbing memories of childhood.

I did not feel the impact from the ordeal of giving evidence to the enquiry until a couple of days later where I am now on medication, and therapy, to help me sleep and needing help to come to terms after all the publicity which is still not finished.

I ask the Inquiry Team and myself what will you achieve to help our age group that went through all this, our abusers have got away with it and we have had to live with this all these years. Giving evidence was hard and painful but I hope and pray that through me doing this that others who have been abused in anyway will come forward, why should these horrible people get away with it you are not the guilty ones the abusers are and if they are still alive they should stand trial but if you do not come forward they are laughing and getting away with it, be brave and stand up for your rights."(END)

Jean's experiences, of giving evidence to the Inquiry, are at odds with the Inquiry's. Jean tell's us;

"I did not feel the impact from the ordeal of giving evidence to the enquiry until a couple of days later where I am now on medication, and therapy, to help me sleep"

Yet the Inquiry tells us;

"All the witnesses who have given evidence so far have been positive about both their experience and the support received at the IJCI." HERE


Indeed the Inquiry, after its own major SECURITY BREACH is at odds with itself where it tells us;

"There has been NO (my emphasis) security breach over mail sent by the Inquiry.HERE

But at the same time tells us;

"it is not possible to determine if there has been deliberate interference with the Inquiry’s post" HERE

Things are not stacking up, questions ARE being asked of the Inquiry, but answers are not forthcoming.

Thank's to Jean, and all Victims/survivors/witnesses/whistleblowers for attempting to get the truth out there. We will continue to do the same.






17 comments:

  1. Have just read ex-Senator Stuart Syvret's blog entry entitledRESIGN: JERSEY’S CHILD-ABUSE PUBLIC INQUIRY; its quite a damning read, which leaves one with little confidence in the way Evershed's is running the 'Committee of Enquiry'.

    Jean Neil's guest posting here seems to be corroborating many of the facts that ex-Senator Stuart Syvret has raised.

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    1. Jean's story does corroborate Stuart's findings and more the reason for the chairwoman to do the honourable thing and resign. Poor Jean sounds more traumatised now she has been through the COI than she has been in the past. If this is the way victims are treated by the enquiry then I can't blame any of them for not wanting to take part.

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  2. Listen to John Hemming MP speaking on BBC World at one on the 8th of July 2014:

    Early day motion 279

    INQUIRY INTO CHILD ABUSE AND THE CROWN DEPENDENCIES
    Session: 2014-15
    Date tabled: 21.07.2014

    Primary sponsor: Hemming, John

    Sponsors: I Shannon, Jim I Connarty, Michael I Russell, Bob I Hancock, Mike I Flynn, Paul


    That this House, being conscious of the numerous cases of previously concealed child abuse in which individuals have been able to use their status as public figures to deter victims and to prevent or disrupt investigations of their crimes, and being conscious that in some cases abusers, and those who have concealed abuse, have been able to use their positions in public office and the institutions of the state such as Parliament and Government to shield them and their wrongdoing from proper, lawful scrutiny, recognises that the dangers of such cover-ups occurring are even greater in small, quasi-self-governing communities than at national level, where, even though checks and balances are more extensive, child abuse and cover-ups by the well-connected have still occurred; notes that a local public inquiry in Jersey into child abuse, the Independent Jersey Care Inquiry, has not gained the confidence of all victims and witnesses; and calls on the relevant UK authorities, the Secretary of State for Justice, the Crown and the Privy Council, in exercise of their responsibilities and powers to ensure good governance, the rule of law and proper administration of justice in the Crown Dependencies, to empower the overarching UK inquiry into child abuse to include the Crown Dependencies.

    Total number of signatures: 17

    Source: House of Commons - Early day motion 279

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    1. On Tuesday (21/10/14) the Home Office announced the scope (terms of reference) of the Woolf Inquiry, which specifically ruled out covering Crown Dependencies (which includes Jersey).

      Jersey is a Crown Dependency (the Crown is most dependant upon Jersey being a tax-haven), but Jersey is also part of 'Great Britain' and as such part of the 'common travel area', a borderless area of the British Isles in which children were freely trafficked by child abusers (listen to John Hemming MP speaking in the previous post!

      Because Jersey is part of Great Britain and the common travel area, the British Isle of Jersey should be part of the 'Woolf Enquiry', especially knowing that children were trafficked within the 'common travel area' of Great Britain to which Jersey belongs!

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    2. Jersey is a British Isle and as such is also part of the 'common travel area' in which children have been freely trafficked by child abusers!

      If you listen to the 'BBC World at One' interview with John Hemming MP (link above at 09:20), it is blatantly obvious that Jersey should be part of the Woolf Enquiry (although I do not agree that Fiona Woolf should be the person running the independent inquiry into historic child sex abuse).

      See: Woolf position 'beyond the pale' - The Star 22/10/14

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    3. The Jersey people have been consistently denied justice by the States of Jersey and played for fools by the Conservative Government (towing behind its Lib. Dem. coalition poodle)!

      We want real justice for victims of child abuse!

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    4. We cannot trust the States of Jersey or this flawed Committee of Enquiry to give real justice to the victims of child abuse, we want Jersey to be part of the “British” independent inquiry!

      Thank God for the Stuart Syvret’s of this world, we need more of them to fight child abuse and get real justice for victims!

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  3. RE. the informative conversation above including "On Tuesday (21/10/14) the Home Office announced the scope (terms of reference) of the Woolf Inquiry, which specifically ruled out covering Crown Dependencies (which includes Jersey)."

    ----------------------------------

    www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2802925/child-abuse-inquiry-chair-pale-step-dinner-party-links-tory-leon-brittan-say-victims.html
    "Oops! Silly me: Embarassment for sex abuse inquiry boss Fiona Woolf as picture emerges that calls into question her evidence over links to Lord Brittan "

    www.theguardian.com/society/2014/oct/22/fiona-woolf-recalled-home-affairs-committee-links-brittans
    "Fiona Woolf faces new questions from MPs over links with Lord Brittan (MPs ‘not totally satisfied’ with answers given by head of inquiry into abuse as details of new contact emerge)"

    www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-29719090
    "Legal challenge launched over abuse inquiry chair"

    ----------------------------------


    Ooops ......the Home Office had better have a rethink .......once it has put the wheels back on the Inquiry!

    The UK public are in no mood for any more cover up sh!t.
    Voting jersey is still in denial (but not for much longer).

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  4. Just heard on the news that the COI is going to release to the public documents of those who have passed away, one wonders if the Wilfred Krichefski paperwork is going to be released as well...

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    1. "Just heard on the news that the COI is going to release to the public documents of those who have passed away" ........one wonders if this will apply to Mr. Alan Maguire.

      According to the BBC, unprosecuted Jersey child abuser "Mr Maguire died in 2008."
      www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-jersey-29621770

      But the BBC (16 October 2014) says that he died [again !!!] in 2009:
      www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-jersey-29647117
      "Alan Maguire died in France in 2009 and BBC News has been unable to contact Jane Maguire."

      This could be put down to sloppy journalism by the BBC and be less worthy of note, EXCEPT that if the Jersey Law Offices / AG were to be believed Alan Maguire also died in 1998/1999, having been "terminally ill" when they pulled the plug on his trial.


      ..........only for Alan Maguire to be discovered "alive and kicking" in France a decade later where he was well enough to attempt to assault a BBC cameraman !

      SEE: Jersey: Island of Secrets - BBC1 Panorama - March 31 2008
      www.youtube.com/watch?v=fO4IME4g1kw


      So is Mr. Alan Maguire really IS dead this time ........Presumably his details and at least some of his crimes will be published ??????

      No. Too embarrassing for the various AG's and Bailhaches?

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  5. Never ceases to amaze me how the inbred elite of this little rock seem to coalesce when it comes to hiding the truth. If any ordinary Jersey folk are minded to ask 'why' did the latest election bring back the failed previous incumbents and at the same time vote out the few who were capable of holding the wasters to account, it is really is quite simple. All those who chose NOT to vote simply played straight into the hands of the elites foot soldiers, it would not matter to them if their chosen grew horns out of their heads, their brainwashed followers would still vote for them. But all you who did not vote allowed this to happen so shame on you. As Stuart so rightly said "You get the government you deserve"

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    1. Yes, a simply dreadful state of affairs. The result is an abysmal disaster. 2008 was, at the time, far from a balanced (quote 'normal' or 'universal') assembly. Heavily leaning to the right, at least there was some political weight on the other side, approximately 1/5th - 2/5th's, or thereabouts, depending on the issue raised. Now the Assembly scales have tipped so far to the right, the counter weight will be no more effective than a fly playing tug of war with an elephant. Today we can forget even hoping for a better Jersey.

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  6. You shouldn't be interviewing this poor woman because you are not qualified to and I would put money on the COI knowing nothing about it.

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    1. " and I would put money on the COI knowing nothing about it."

      That doesn't even make sense.
      ...........How much money?
      .......... and "knowing nothing about [WHAT?]" -please explain

      There is an interesting write up

      http://freespeechoffshore.nl/stuartsyvretblog/resign-jerseys-child-abuse-public-inquiry/

      Which includes details on how the CoI has a team of spin doctors in attendance but NO VICTIM SUPPORT and how the "inquiry" has been constrained NOT TO INQUIRE by bizarre protocols.

      £6m pocked by lawyers and spin-doctors.

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    2. Dear reader at 19:40, think about what is being said, it is quite profound...

      THE C.O.I. HAS NO VICTIM SUPPORT PRESENT DURING HEARINGS TO HELP THOSE GIVING EVIDENCE!

      THE C.O.I. 'MEDIA TEAM' SPIN-DOCTOR (LIZ MACKEAN) CONVENIENTLY HELPS TO CONSOLE VICTIMS INSTEAD...

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    3. Very unprofessional to allow an unqualified person such as Liz MacKean console a victim of child abuse who has broken down whilst giving evidence during a hearing! What in heavens name is Frances Oldham QC thinking, allowing such an unprofessional state of affairs to exist within her enquires?

      Poor show Frances Oldham, very poor show!

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