AUSTRALIA
Newcastle Herald
By JOANNE McCARTHY
Feb. 20, 2013
HALF a century ago first a stranger then a trusted church volunteer sexually assaulted the son of a Methodist minister.
The stranger’s assault was reported to police but was so poorly handled the boy retreated into silence, a silence that continued to hide the three years of abuse by the church volunteer.
This week the son, Reverend Wes Hartley – the new leader of the Uniting Church in the Hunter and a former mayor in Western Australia – spoke of the abuse in public for the first time.
As Australia prepares for two inquiries into child sexual abuse, Reverend Hartley hopes it will encourage others to speak out.
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