The investigation had been on-going for
nearly two years, and GRACE had interviewed approximately 100 witnesses. At issue in the investigation was not only
the missionary’s alleged acts of sexual abuse, but more broadly, questions
related to how ABWE responded to allegations. In other words, the investigation
was also concerned with who at ABWE had knowledge about the accused missionary’s
conduct, and with what they did or did not do.
GRACE was prepared to issue its final report
and had already informed ABWE that the report would be delivered before the end
of March.
ABWE hired a new investigative team to replace GRACE, but its new investigative team has a privacy policy which provides that the results of its investigation will be released only to the client -- i.e., only to ABWE -- and not publicly.
ABWE hired a new investigative team to replace GRACE, but its new investigative team has a privacy policy which provides that the results of its investigation will be released only to the client -- i.e., only to ABWE -- and not publicly.
Read GRACE's February 11th letter in response to ABWE’s termination – a letter
that sets forth some of ABWE’s conduct during the investigative process – and decide
for yourself what you think about this. Personally, I think ABWE’s termination
of GRACE gives the appearance that there were likely some officials at ABWE who
feared that GRACE’s report would implicate them in a keep-it-quiet cover-up in
much the same way that an independent investigation of the Penn State scandal
implicated others at the institution in addition to the child molester.
GRACE sums up its response to ABWE with
this statement: “When placed in the context of ABWE’s conduct
over the past 20 months, the termination of GRACE strongly suggests ABWE is
unwilling to have itself investigated unless the investigation is within your control.”
GRACE also points out that many missionary kids and their families have
been waiting for a decade to have an independent investigation of this matter. Tragically, GRACE is almost certainly correct in stating that, for many of
these individuals, ABWE’s decision “will inflict a pain as great as any they
have ever known.”
___________________
Related post:
GRACE report vindicates missionary kids, September 4, 2010
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