Police Investigate Abuse Claims at Summer Camp Where Archbishop of Canterbury Worked
By Patrick Foster, Nicola Harley
Police are investigating allegations of child abuse taking place at a summer camp where the Archbishop of Canterbury once worked. The Most Rev Justin Welby has issued an “unreserved and unequivocal” apology on behalf of the Church of England after admitting the Church had failed to report allegation of abuse by John Smyth QCto the police when the alleged abuse came to light in 1982. Today he said he was "completely unaware" of claims that one of his colleagues at a Christian summer camp had been subjecting boys to savage sado-masochistic beatings. It raises the possibility that detectives investigating the abuse may want to speak to the Archbishop to if he has any information to help with the inquiry - named Operation Cubic. The Archbishop told LBC today that he "never heard anything at all" about allegations that Mr Smyth, with whom he had worked at holiday camps in the late 1970s, used the gatherings to recruit boys to a cult in which they were subjected to "horrific" assaults.
This morning the Archbishop admitted that he had stayed in contact with the barrister after he left the UK following the investigation into the claims, but insisted he knew nothing about them. He told Nick Ferrari on LBC: "Yes I was at that particular camp in the 1970s. I was young then, between the ages of maybe 19 and 22. "I was completely unaware of any abuse. I never heard anything at all, never had the slightest suspicion that there was anything going on. "I went off to France in 1978, when I'm told the abuse began. It may have been earlier or later, I don't know. I was abroad during the time the report was done and I had no contact with him at all." The Archbishop said he remembered Mr Smyth as "charming, delightful, very clever, a brilliant speaker". He added: "I wasn't a close friend. I wasn't in his inner circle; far from it."
Pressed as to whether he had stayed in touch with him, he said: "I have a vague feeling I may have had a Christmas card in the Nineties. When I was living in Paris he passed through once and I shook hands with him but that's the limit." On Wednesday the Archbishop issued an “unreserved and unequivocal” apology on behalf of the Church of England after admitting he had worked as a dormitory officer and mentor at the holiday camps at which teenage boys were groomed for abuse. He said the Church had “failed terribly” by not reporting Mr Smyth to police after he was accused of carrying out a string of “horrific” sado-masochistic attacks in the late Seventies. The allegations were only reported to the police in 2013, after an alleged victim approached the Church with the claims. Channel 4 News will on Thursday broadcast allegations that Mr Smyth used the camps, which were attended by boys from some of Britain’s leading public schools, to gain access to teenagers, whom he forced to strip naked before subjecting them to savage beatings. The statement said: “The Archbishop of Canterbury was a dormitory officer at Iwerne holiday camp in the late 1970s, where boys from public schools learnt to develop life as Christians. The role was to be a mentor to the boys, as was that of his now wife at a similar camp for girls.
“John Smyth was one of the main leaders at the camp and although the Archbishop worked with him, he was not part of the inner circle of friends; no one discussed allegations of abuse by John Smyth with him. “The Archbishop left England to work in Paris for an oil company in 1978, where he remained for five years. “The Archbishop knew Mr Smyth had moved overseas but, apart from the occasional card, did not maintain contact with him.” The statement concluded: “We recognise that many institutions fail catastrophically, but the Church is meant to hold itself to a far, far higher standard and we have failed terribly. For that the Archbishop apologises unequivocally and unreservedly to all survivors.” A spokesperson for Hampshire Police said: "We are investigating allegations of non-recent physical abuse involving a senior figure at the Iwerne Trust. "We have contacted those victims whose information has been provided to us and we would encourage anyone else with any information about these events to contact our dedicated investigation team via 101, quoting Op Cubic." The Telegraph tried to contact Mr Smyth but he has not responded.
|
.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.