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On Thursday, July 2, 2020 Reverend June Dolley-Major commenced a hunger strike outside the residence of Archbishop Thabo Makgoba.
Rev. Dolley-Mayor has been protesting against the Anglican Church’s discrimination toward her and how it has dealt with her sexual assault case at the hands of clergymen for years now.
Sonke is concerned by the church’s reluctance to deal with issues of sexual abuse, particularly because Rev. Dolley-Mayor is not the only person who has called out the church in recent weeks.
Recently, author Ishtiyaq Shukri wrote an open letter stating that he was a victim of sexual abuse by priests from the Church of England. In the letter, Shukri also asked why the Archbishop is unable to adequately deal with the systematic and institutionalised sexual abuse that occurs within the church.
The church is clearly failing in its duty to offer healing to victims of sexual abuse and it can do better. It can't be acceptable that survivors of sexual abuse are shunned and forced to protest and go on a hunger strike during a global pandemic.
Churches are meant to be sanctuaries for the afflicted, but the Anglican Church has proven to be anything but when it comes to issues of sexual abuse.
Sonke is calling on the church to improve the way it handles sexual abuse cases matters and ensure that the institution remains the sanctuary that it is meant to be.
We further make a call to all religious institutions to take matters of gender-based violence and femicide seriously and respond to them in the most sensitive way premised on a survivor centred approach.
Sonke is also committed to walk this journey with survivors to ensure that justice is served.
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