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Allegations
of Abuse in Institutions |
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Two Salvation Army
employees accused of sexually abusing children decades ago are still working
for the religious charity. Commissioner Shaw Clifton,
responsible for the Salvation Army in New Zealand, said the alleged offenders
-- a man and a woman -- now held management positions with the Salvation
Army. "Neither of the
two is any longer working in a direct or hands-on relationship with children,"
he said. A woman employed by the
army had been named by two men as having sexually abused them when they were
in Salvation Army residential homes. Another former resident told the army a
male employee had sexually abused her. The alleged offences took
place about 35 years ago, Commissioner Clifton said. Extensive interviews
took place before allegations were put before those accused. Four or five retired
officers and former residents had also been accused. "There are a small
number of people being named who are still alive but most of those are very
elderly and feeble," he said. The Salvation Army had
received 23 formal claims, of which 15 had emerged after recent publicity,
and an office has been set up to deal with former residents. "The investigation
is not a flabby, ad hoc thing," he said. Most complaints
originated from stays at Hodderville Boys Home in the Waikato town of
Putaruru, and a Salvation Army home in Masterton. Some wanted counselling
or their file, and others merely wanted to tell their story, while some
sought financial compensation. The army was tailoring
its response to each former resident's request. It had not yet involved the
police but would do so if it was appropriate. It was keeping an open mind
about an independent inquiry but would continue its own "vigorous"
investigation in the meantime. |
