The Evangelical Alliance unreservedly condemns all forms of child abuse, and considers any accusation of witchcraft levelled at a child to be abusive, immoral and unbiblical.
26 January 2007
This is in line with our previous statements on this issue, and we strongly contest any suggestions that the activities of Pastor Dieudonne Tukala are associated more broadly with black African evangelical churches, or that this is part of a growing church trend.
The government’s official report – ‘Child Abuse Linked to Accusations of ‘Possession’ and ‘Witchcraft’ – published by the DfES in 2006, identified 38 specific cases throughout England and Wales over a six year period – in comparison with a total 30,000 recorded cases of child abuse every year.
The African and Caribbean Evangelical Alliance (ACEA) sees each of these cases as an utter tragedy.
ACEA’s CEO, Katei Kirby, said: “The government has rightly drawn attention to the fact that child abuse is everyone’s responsibility, and that only by working together can we remove this evil from our society.
“The African and Caribbean Evangelical Alliance has been working with black majority churches to address the issue, and has developed model child protection policies for their use.
“Since the Climbie enquiry, we have ensured that our member churches and organisations demonstrate a clear commitment to child safety.”
ACEA is also continuing pro-active multi-agency work with organisations including Churches Together in England, the Churches Child Protection Advisory Service, African anti-child abuse organisation AFRUCA, DfES and NSPCC on this issue.
Notes to editors:
The Evangelical Alliance UK, formed in 1846, is an umbrella group representing over one million evangelical Christians in the UK and is made up of member churches, organisations and individuals. As part of a movement ‘uniting to change society’, the Alliance promotes unity and truth, acts as an evangelical voice to the state, society and the wider Church, and provides resources to help members and other evangelicals live out their faith in their communities.
