AUSTRALIA
Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse
23 November, 2015
The Royal Commission’s report of Case Study 18 – the response of Australian Christian Churches and affiliated Pentecostal churches to allegations of child sexual abuse – was released today.
The report follows a public hearing held in October last year which examined the response of Hillsong Church in New South Wales, Northside Christian College and Northside Christian Centre (now Encompass Church) in Victoria, Sunshine Coast Church in Queensland and the Australian Christian Churches (formerly the Assemblies of God in Australia) to allegations of child sexual abuse.
Hillsong Church, Assemblies of God and Frank Houston
The hearing heard evidence that when allegations about Mr Frank Houston’s abuse of AHA emerged in 1999, Mr Frank Houston’s son, Pastor Brian Houston, was the National President of the Assemblies of God in Australia. He confronted his father, who confessed to the abuse.
The Commissioners express the view that the New South Wales Executive failed to appoint a contact person for the complainant, interview the complainant, have the State or National Executive interview the alleged perpetrator, or record any of the steps it took.
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