These six organisations refuse to join the child abuse redress scheme
Families and Social Services Minister Anne Ruston has threatened sanctions against six organisations that have left 55 survivors of childhood sexual abuse without a clear path to justice by failing to join the national redress scheme.
Boys Brigade New South Wales, The Australian Air League, the Lakes Entrance Pony Club, the Jehovah's Witnesses, Kenja Communications and Fairbridge Restored Limited have not submitted notices of intention to join the scheme despite having claims against them.
Anne Ruston has named six organisations that have failed to commit to joining the national redress scheme.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
Senator Ruston, who had given hundreds of charities and organisations with a history of working with children until June 30 to signal their commitment to the scheme, said each of the six groups would be banned from receiving government funding and may be hit with taxation penalties.
"These organisations deny the 55 survivors who have applications against these institutions the redress that they deserve, the acknowledgment that they deserve for what they have endured, the pain and suffering," the minister said on Wednesday.
"The federal government has made the decision that these six organisations, and any other organisations against which applications are made that refuse to join the scheme in the future, will no longer be eligible to bid for any government funding.
"I'm also looking towards tax status and to revoke favourable tax status for these organisations, including their charitable status."
Senator Ruston said she would be travelling around the country next week to meet with state and territory ministers responsible for redress, to discuss "further measures that may be able to be taken against these organisations".
She said the "overwhelming" majority of charities and organisations that had either been named in the Royal Commission or had applications against them in National Redress Scheme had committed to join the scheme or had joined the scheme.
A total of 224 institutions that have operated across 51,000 locations, along with the Commonwealth government, state and territory governments, have joined the scheme.
A further 156 organisations, including the Australian Olympic Committee and Netball Australia, have signalled their commitment.
Senator Ruston said a large number of organisations had chosen to join the scheme despite having not been named in the Royal Commission, and not having an application against them.
She thanked these groups "for the leadership that they've shown to the people that they work with but also the commitment that they have shown to child safety."
The action meant that, should a victim make an application for redress against one of these organisations, it could be processed quickly.
Kenja Communication co-founder Janice R Hamilton said in a letter to Senator Ruston that she was aware of the redress scheme and accepted "unreservedly" that sexual abuse was a crime, but that "we deny that sexual abuse has ever taken place at this organisation".
The letter, published on Kenja Communication's website, said her co-founder Kenneth Dyers had been "exonerated by the court system" in proceedings that stretched from 1993 to 2002 and that "there were no convictions" in relation to the allegations made against him.
Boys Brigade New South Wales, The Australian Air League, the Lakes Entrance Pony Club and the Jehovah's Witnesses have been contacted for comment.
The deadline for organisations to complete the process of joining the national redress scheme is December 31.