editor's comment:

In Fall 2004, one of Denmark's largest newspapers, Ekstra Bladet, ran a series of newspaper articles regarding credible allegations of sexual molestation within the Jehovah's Witnesses, and of a cover-up. The articles' titles (as translated) included "Jehovah-Leader Hides Child Molesting," "Keep Quiet About Sexual Molesting," and "Jehovah-Order: Keep Quiet About Child Molesting," as well as others.

The newspaper reported that those who very credibly claimed they were victims of childhood sexual abuse within the organization were compelled to keep their claims secret. Like the Boston Globe's series on the Boston Archdiocese's cover-up of clergy abuse within the Roman Catholic Church, which ran five years ago, this series focused not only on the actions of individuals, but on the organization-wide policies that led to institutional secrecy about child abuse allegations. The series focused, as well, on the impact of the policies, and the underlying alleged abuse, on victims and their families.

The Jehovah's Witness lawsuit in Denmark shows the same internal dynamic as in the Catholic Church, and based on the allegations, the institutions have adopted matching strategies: hide as much as possible and when exposed, go on the offensive. Somehow, these institutions came to believe that they have a right to an internal, secret sphere where they cannot be held accountable for their culpability in the suffering of children.