ISKCON Australia – Communications Report:
Going forward with correct policies in place, ISKCON Australia, like other religious institutions, have had to re-evaluate and clarify their policies and procedures in line with expectations of today’s society.
Child Protection:
After the last ISKCON Australia National Council AGM, a proposal was presented and passed that ISKCON Australia strikes up an engagement with the Australian Childhood Foundation (ACF).
The Australian Childhood Foundation has extensive experience in undertaking collaborative consultancy projects and/or tailored training for organisations that work with children, young people and families.
These include activities which meet the needs of a broad range of individual professionals and agencies, including:
• Clinical Supervision for practitioners about trauma informed practice.
• Secondary Consultation for individuals, care teams and organisations about understanding and responding to the specific needs of traumatised children and young people, often engaged in challenging and harmful behaviour.
• Workforce development packages that include training, reflective practice forums, action based research activities, and safeguarding children policy development and implementation.
All projects are implemented by senior members of the Foundation’s Management Team with broad range experience in therapeutic approaches, child protection, family support, out of home care and mental health.
As well, each Temple will have a Child Care Officer /s working under the direction of a National Child Care Officer who will be in close liaison with ACF.
Domestic violence:
ISKCON’s National Council has moved that: ISKCON Australia develops a Domestic Violence Unit to offer community support and help to individuals who are experiencing any form of domestic violence and provide access to professional help.
Policies in regard to domestic violence are currently being worked out with the assistance of the Australasian Centre for Human Rights and Health (ACHRH).
ACHRH’s vision is happy homes and a strong community. Healthy, vibrant women and children are the key. Creative dialogue between the Australasian community, the professionals, the policy planners and the academics is their chosen method.
ACHRH’s objectives: (Quoted from their website)
A) To inform the development of policies and programmes around gender and gender-based violence by combining community based initiatives with scientific knowledge and professional expertise.
We aim to use qualitative aspects of the broader social and cultural context of gender inequities in gender-based violence in migrant and ethnic Australasian communities.
We aim to make the community aware of gender dimensions of practices related to sexual and reproductive health & experiences of violence within marriage and outside.
We partner with the community and educate and describe the health impact of gender inequities and gender-based violence.
B) To evaluate interventions that empower women and men to improve their family life, enhance family harmony through building gender respect, gender equality and preventing and responding to gender-based violence.
C) To provide scientific evidence for defining a public health response to gender-based violence.
D) To improve education, awareness and the health of women, through a focus on sexual and reproductive issues within families ; undertake research to gender issues within sexual and reproductive health.
ACHRH is founded on the concept that gender inequity is a substantial violation of human rights and undermines women’s dignity, health and access to health care.
The main interest of the unit lies in the notion that Women form the basis of a strong family unit and a positive gender based relations in a family are the basis of a strong community. We intend to explore and share the knowledge in areas of gender-based violence and its impact on women’s lives and health with the community.
ACHRH is initiating a number of projects – Community Participatory research, also called action research, where the partnership of individuals and organisations working together promotes education, awareness, intervention, data collection and an appropriate health sector response to gender-based violence through research, training and advocacy in Australasian migrant Indian and Ethnic communities.
We are a dynamic team and we use a variety of methods, including community based ethnographic intervention, individual intervention, and address questions of substantial importance for health policy, health promotion and health services for women and families of Indian, migrant and Australasian Communities. We emphasise working in partnership with other organisations in research, training and advocacy activities.
The knowledge we generate helps members of the public and policy makers alike in understanding the magnitude of the problems studied, as well as their risk factors.
Our work is designed to enhance understanding of the quality of health and domestic violence related services provided in Australasia. We describe problems in these services, barriers to their use and the aspects of services that users really value. We also develop training materials for people in the community and health workers, and implement a considerable amount of training on HIV/AIDS and sexual and reproductive health promotion.
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Women’s Issues:
In regard to women’s issues, at the same ISKCON Australia’s National Council AGM, Krishnarupa devi dasi, a senior Srila Prabhupada disciple from New Govardhana, was appointed as the national women’s representative on the Council with full voting rights.
A local women’s representative from each temple will be appointed by the temple president with the approval of the Executive Committee to liaise with Krishnarupa on a regular basis.
Sexual harassment and misconduct …in religious organisations:
In accordance with policies that are in place in other ISKCON Centres and Temples around the world, ISKCON Australia is now also working on putting into place procedures and policies that will make reasonable efforts to prevent sexual abuse and harassment, and encourage prompt response to all allegations of abuse where there is a reasonable belief that abuse has occurred.
Each Temple will comply with all obligations of both civil and ecclesiastical law. It will endeavour to prevent sexual abuse and harassment to the extent possible, provide education and guidance as appropriate, and promote healing and empowerment when needed.
No person, whether in leadership or clergy, who has been determined to have engaged in sexual abuse, will be allowed to remain active in a position of trust.
Such actions may violate civil and criminal laws, as well as Vaisnava spiritual principles, and are outside the scope of the duties, employment and engagement of all personnel. ISKCON Australia will not tolerate any such behaviour in any of the Australian Temples and Centres.
LGBTIQ issues (Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and questioning):
The Scriptures that the devotees of ISKCON follow state that every being is an eternal soul, part and parcel of the Supreme Lord Krishna, and that the ultimate goal of life is full blissful Krishna Consciousness which frees one from the cycle of birth and death.
Krishna Consciousness is attained by one’s real self, or atma, which is distinct from one’s physical body and personality (false ego) as well as outer attributes such as race, caste, gender, and sexual orientation.
Progress towards Krishna Consciousness comes through Bhakti yoga spiritual practices, and the attainment of Krishna Consciousness implies transcending material desires and impulses, including sexual ones.
To put it provocatively, an LGBTIQ person who has mastered his or her impulses (sexual or otherwise) is actually closer to Krishna Consciousness than a non-LGBTIQ person who is a slave to desires.
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness encourages all people to take to the path of Bhakti and supports and welcomes all those who strive for Krishna Consciousness irrespective of their sexual orientation.
Your servant,
Bhakta dasa,
National Communications Director, ISKCON Australia.
