Joint statement from the Evangelical Alliance, Churches Together in England and the Churches Child Protection Advisory Service in response to the Dispatches programme ‘Britain’s Witch Children’
From EA
The Evangelical Alliance and Churches Together in England condemn churches abusing or encouraging the abuse of children, in particular any church that brands children as witches or demon-possessed.
The Evangelical Alliance and Churches Together in England represent thousands of churches from across the evangelical community, including African churches.
We wholeheartedly condemn churches abusing or encouraging the abuse of children, in particular any church that brands children as witches or demon-possessed.
However, we would like to stress that Monday's Dispatches focused on a small rogue element of pastors, and the vast majority of African churches in the UK do not subscribe to these practises.
We are disappointed that Channel 4 made no attempt to contact either the Evangelical Alliance or Churches Together in England for comment during the production of this programme. We are also dismayed that the programme did not feature any Christian representatives, who would have condemned these practises and provided the context that they are not tolerated in the vast majority of African churches.
We will therefore be making a representation to Channel 4 explaining our unhappiness with the imbalance shown by the programme.
The programme also omitted to mention the huge strides forward that Evangelical Alliance member organisation, the Churches Child Protection Advisory Service (CCPAS), has made over the past few years in developing and implementing effective child protection policies in African churches in the UK.
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