An overwhelming majority of children of Jehovah’s Witnesses have experienced abuse from their parents, according to a report compiled by a lawyers group.
The report, released Monday, sheds light on the abuse many second-generation Jehovah’s Witnesses have experienced from their parents under rules that were set out by the religion, including forcing the children to refuse blood transfusions regardless of their situation, and corporal punishment.
In the report compiled by the lawyers group supporting former Jehovah’s Witnesses, 81% of respondents said that they were made to own a “blood transfusion refusal card.” Even if a child is going through serious medical treatment, there have been several cases where parents have refused to let their children receive a blood transfusion, the report said.