Archbishop announces panel to review handling of abuse reports

 Bishopscourt has released the following statement from Archbishop Thabo Makgoba:

“I am pleased to report that following a meeting with the church's legal advisers and our Safe and Inclusive Church Commission at Bishopscourt in Cape Town today, three prominent South Africans experienced in human rights issues have agreed to review my and the church's past actions in relation to the John Smyth abuse scandal.

“The review panel comprises the civil society leader, Dr Mamphela Ramphele, Advocate Jeremy Gauntlett SC KC, Chancellor of the Anglican Diocese of Cape Town, and Judge Ian Farlam, Provincial Chancellor of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, who chaired the Commission of Inquiry into the killing of miners at Marikana in 2012.

“They will carry out a retrospective analysis of our handling of reports received by the church, including a letter from the Diocese of Ely in 2013, reporting a historical case of abuse in Britain in 1981-82, a suspected case in Zimbabwe in the 1990s, and alerting us that Smyth was living in Cape Town. They will make recommendations to me as to further action.

“In the past week, it has become clear that Smyth was a member of three Anglican congregations in South Africa, two in Durban in the early 2000s and one in Cape Town, first for a period until December 2013, and later for some months before his death in 2018. To date, we have not found any cases of abuse reported to the Anglican Church in South Africa. However, our Safe and Inclusive Church Commission has re-circulated its contact details, and should any complaints be received in future, they will be handled by the Commission.

“For someone in the church, which is meant to be a safe and nurturing space, to prey on God's children when they are at their most vulnerable is evil beyond description. We must eradicate it, root and branch. My hope is that this panel will make recommendations which help us to achieve that. I am profoundly grateful to the members of the panel for agreeing to serve.”

Archbishop Thabo Makgoba's sermon at the Institution of the Minister-in-Charge of Emmanuel Church, Cape Town

Institution of the Minister-in-Charge of Emmanuel Church, and Associate Rector in the Parish of St John the Evangelist

17th November 2024

Readings: 1 Maccabees 2: 29 -50; Psalm 144; Matthew 23: 13-24

May I speak in the name of God who calls, informs and transforms us. Amen.

Dear sisters and brothers in Christ, dear family of Emmanuel Church in plurality with St John the Evangelist-Wynberg, I am pleased to be with you this afternoon and celebrate this important day – the institution of your new Minister-in-Charge.

Statement to South African media on Church of England abuse report

The Archbishop's office has received requests for comment by South African news outlets suggesting that he and the Diocese of Cape Town failed to act on allegations of abuse in South Africa by the Briton, John Smyth, the subject of reports that he committed horrendous abuse in the UK and Zimbabwe. Neither the UK nor Zimbabwe are under the jurisdiction of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa.

Bishopscourt issued the following immediate response today. A more comprehensive response from the Archbishop, dealing more broadly with the church's response to abuse, is forthcoming.

 Statement by Archbishop Thabo Makgoba on abuse by John Smyth: 

“One of our bishops in Cape Town received a letter in 2013 from an English bishop, outlining instances of past abuse committed by Smyth in the UK and Zimbabwe. The letter said Smyth was living at an address in Bergvliet but the English bishop did not know where or whether he might be attending church. No allegations of abuse committed in South Africa were made. 

“The local bishop concerned was told by St Martin's Church in Bergvliet that Smyth had worshipped in their church previously... [Note] St Martin's reported that Smyth neither counselled young people, nor were any allegations of abuse or grooming made against Smyth by any member.

“I became aware of the matter in 2017, when Channel Four in the UK broadcast an expose of Smyth's abuse. Since no allegations of abuse within the jurisdiction of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa were made, and Smyth had not been worshipping at an Anglican Church in South Africa for many years, no disciplinary action by the church or criminal complaint to the police was possible.

“In 2020, I learned that before Smyth's death in 2018, he had asked to worship again at St Martin's. They had permitted him to attend services on condition that he was not to get involved in any ministry or contact any young person. He attended services there in the final months of his life.

“The Anglican Church of Southern Africa is an autonomous church of the Anglican Communion, whose laws and governance are independent of those of the Church of England. I and our bishops are accountable only to our own church's members to ensure that all our churches are safe spaces within which to worship and minister.

“We have a Safe and Inclusive Church Commission whose operations are explained here: https://anglicanchurchsa.org/safe-church-guide/ The Commission acts vigorously and pro-actively – sometimes to the discomfort of our leaders – in response to reports of abuse. Victims of abuse can report it confidentially to: safechurches@anglicanchurchsa.org.za. 

“While no evidence has been forthcoming as to whether John Smyth committed any abuse in South Africa, I believe it necessary that our church ought to consider establishing an inquiry to advise on whether the Diocese of Cape Town, and I personally, have acted in this matter in accordance with our obligations to keep our members safe. To that end, I am seeking advice from our church's Chancellors and Registrars, who give us legal advice, and the Safe and Inclusive Church Commission.”

[Note: The original post of this statement said Smyth had been at St Martin's "for a year or two when he came to Cape Town" and that, from  the Makin report, "it appears this must have been before 2005." This was wrong. Correspondence received at Bishopscourt after the issue of the statement indicates he was at St Martin's at a later date, and resigned in December 2013.] 

Statement on the resignation of the Archbishop of Canterbury

“I am numbed and deeply saddened at losing an Archbishop who is much loved across the Anglican Communion, but his courageous decision to accept accountability is an important step towards eradicating, root and branch, the scandal of abuse in the church worldwide.

“The scandalous abuse of innocent people, often at the most vulnerable times of their lives, affects us all. The Anglican church in Cape Town in which John Smyth worshipped – for a year or two 20 years ago, and again in the final months of his life – has reported that it never received any reports suggesting he abused or groomed young people, but there is no room for complacency.

“For we have had other instances of abuse in the church in Southern Africa, and it is only in recent years that we have established a Safe and Inclusive Church Commission, which is pro-actively pursuing such cases.

“The bishops of Southern Africa join me in assuring Archbishop Justin and his family of their prayers. They share my sadness at his resignation and their respect for a decision reflecting Archbishop Justin's compassion for those affected by the church’s ills.”

Archbishop Thabo Makgoba

Metropolitan

Anglican Church of Southern Africa