Religious vilification complaint against
Alpha course
The latest complaint of
'religious vilification' in Victoria sent shock waves throughout the entire
Christian community.A paedophile prison inmate has called for ALPHA courses to
be closed down in Victoria under Victoria's Racial & Religious
Tolerance Act.
Latest News - 1
August 2005
On 1 August, Justice Stuart Morris dismissed
the complaint of religious vilification against Alpha courses, made by witch
Robin Fletcher. The complaints were against the Salvation Army and CMC
Australasia (the distributors of Alpha). A third complaint against Corrections
Victoria still remains.
Click here
for the website page at VCAT listing the decision.
It is also attached
below.
Click here
for the FULL 9-page decision.
A comment on the decision and an
Overview of the decision was sent by email and is
attached.
__________________________________
Evangelism
Banned? Alpha is one of the main evangelistic programs,
used by most denominations, across Australia.
21 April
2005
A directions hearing was held this morning (21 April 2005) at the Victorian
Civil and Administrative Tribunal in Melbourne. (VCAT)
Today's VCAT law list
notice - "ANTI-DISCRIMINATION LIST - Directions Hearing
Before Deputy President A. Coghlan at 10:00 AM"
The complaint, made by Robin Fletcher, is in relation
to an Alpha course run by
the Salvation Army in Ararat jail.
Fletcher is a self confessed witch and is currently in Ararat prison,
having been convicted of sexual abuse against two teenage girls in 1998. He
was jailed for 10 years.
Fletcher lodged complaints against the Salvation Army
(because it was a Salvation Army chaplain who ran the
course); Corrections Victoria (the Victorian government
section of the Justice Department that runs the prison system)
and CMC Australasia P/L (the distributors of the Alpha
program materials in Victoria).
Fletcher is complaining about references to witchcraft in the Alpha
course videos and manuals.
In his EOC complaint he called for ALPHA courses to be
stopped throughout Victoria "until suitable modifications can
be made to bring it into conformity with the law in Victoria."
Clearly he wants all references to witchcraft and the occult removed BUT this
would entail changing the BIBLE because all references used
are Scriptural.
The Equal Opportunity Commission ‘declined to entertain the complaint’.
However, Fletcher asked that the complaint be referred to the Victorian Civil
and Administrative Tribunal, hence today's hearing.
The VCAT Deputy President gave Fletcher three weeks to lodge his formal
complaint to VCAT. A timetable was set down for responses from the other
parties.
Robin Fletcher stated in his letter to Corrections
Victoria
"The first program I wish to complain about is the Alpha
program. I consider that this program is in violation of the
Equal Opportunity ACT Vic. and also of the Religious Tolerance ACT Vic. I
ask that you ban the ALPHA program in all prisons in Victoria until this matter
is resolved...."
"I am further asking for the discontinuation of the Alpha
program because it constitutes a personal danger to my health and safety
within the prison system.
In this case, because the matter is a serious
one involving potential of physical harm to myself and others you may be
vicariously in breach of the 'serious violations section' of the Religious
Tolerance ACT.'
We will be distributing more information on this case as soon as
possible.
We accessed the files at VCAT to obtain the above information on
the complaint.
27 April 2005: Update -
Media reports
Several major reports have appeared in the
media concerning the complaint brought by Robin Fletcher, a witch in prison on
sexual abuse charges, against Alpha courses. Peter has done an interview for
Vision FM Christian radio and Jenny has written an article for New Life and done
an interview on Religion Report.
Jailed witch to sue
Liam Houlihan and Kate
Uebergang, Herald Sun , Wednesday 27
April 2005.
Dump
this law now
Andrew Bolt, Herald Sun
column, Wednesday 27 April 2005.
Religious
vilification in Victoria
Religion Report, 27 April
2005. Wednesdays at 8.30am, repeated at 8.00pm
Audio and transcript are
available.
Witch's
Complaint Renews Focus on Religious Hatred Law
By Patrick Goodenough, CNSNews.com International Editor, April
25, 2005
Religious Vilification
Jenny
Stokes, New Life, 5 May 2005.
The article is attached below.
23 May 2005 - Update
A hearing
was held at VCAT involving CMC Australasia (Alpha distributors) and Salvation
Army. On Friday 20 May we learned that a 'Directions' hearing for the complaint
by witch Robin Fletcher - against the distributors of the Alpha
course and the Salvation Army - had been called for today (23 May) at
10 am.
Even the legal representatives of the parties were not aware of the
reason for the hearing.
The President of the Tribunal, Justice Stuart
Morris, was listed to conduct the Directions hearing. Peter attended the hearing
to assess the situation.
Justice Morris opened the
proceedings. It appears that he called the meeting to make orders
relating to the intention of CMC (distributors of Alpha)/Salvation Army to
lodge a 'strike-out motion' or an application for the Tribunal to dismiss the
complaint on the basis it is vexatious or misconceived.
He
apparently had not realised that these arrangements had already been
made at the hearing on 21 April. The hearing was a waste
of time for all concerned!
The 'strike
out' motion will be heard at the Tribunal on June 15 at 10 am.
Full report attached below - it contains some
reflections on this case...
15 June 2005: Alpha complaint - hearing of
the ‘dismissal motion’
A hearing was held at VCAT on 15
June to consider a ‘strike-out’ or dismissal motion from the distributors of
Alpha and the Salvation Army. Justice Stuart Morris, the President of VCAT heard
the submissions. The legal firms for each party had each provided a 10 page
submission to support their call for the complaint by Robin Fletcher, a witch
currently in Ararat prison, to be dismissed. Fletcher spoke to the Tribunal by
videophone. The hearing was limited to one hour and Justice Morris said he would
primarily consider the written submissions and Fletcher’s written response. He
said he would announce his decision in about two weeks.
Corrections Victoria:
Robin
Fletcher has lodged his complaint against Corrections Victoria and the
hearing for that matter has been set for a 3 day hearing starting at 10 am on
13 September 2005. Author: Jenny Stokes | Modified: 19 February 2008 |
