On the Record debate is looking at how to deal with abusive religious leaders. This week shocking testimony emerged in the trial of Nigerian televangelist, Timothy Omotoso. The senior pastor of the Jesus Dominion International Church has been accused of keeping young congregants in a house in Umhlanga and other locations and sexually assaulting them. The charges he faces are purely criminal - trafficking and rape - but the case shows it may be harder to deal with abuse in a religious setting. Congregants - many of them women - continue to sing Omotoso's praises. Please be warned that graphic details emerged this week and may be discussed in tonight's on the Record debate. Listen to the first witness on the stand, Cheryl Zondi, who has accused Omotoso of sexually abusing her since the age of 14. You'll hear the treatment she receives from the defence lawyer which has sparked concern that it could discourage other rape victims from coming forward. He implies that if an underage girl was too confused and scared to scream, then somehow that shows she wasn't being raped. It also sets the scene in terms of how Zondi felt other congregants in the church were complicit and were unlikely to help her anyway.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzB9G7WxbjU