New Zealand commune’s funding trust loses charity status over child labor and other misconduct
The board said trust funds enabled child labor, forced work and unreported sexual abuse, and the group can appeal the ruling.
- On Tuesday, the Charities Registration Board revoked the charitable status of the Christian Church Community Trust, which operates Gloriavale, for three years beginning September 23. The board cited serious wrongdoing, including child labor and failure to report sexual crimes.
- Findings from an investigation determined trust funds enabled serious wrongdoing by the religious group. The Employment Court previously ruled former members were employees, not volunteers, heavily influencing the board's decision.
- Supporting about 600 people on New Zealand's South Island, the trust holds assets totaling $50 million. The board rejected the trust's objections that deregistration would harm residents, citing the severity of misconduct.
- The board also disqualified former Overseeing Shepherd Howard Temple from charity governance roles for five years. Deregistration rescinds the trust's tax-exempt privileges, though the sect's school with about 80 students remains open during legal processes.
- Charities Registration Board chair Jane Wrightson stated the decision regulates the trust, not the religious community itself. The group maintains the right to appeal to the Taxation and Charities Review Authority.
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The Toronto Star
New Zealand commune’s funding trust loses charity status over child labor and other misconduct
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — The charity arm of a cloistered New Zealand commune was stripped of its tax-exempt status Tuesday after an investigation found the trust’s funds enabled “serious
Associated Press News
New Zealand commune's funding trust loses charity status over child labor and other misconduct
New Zealand authorities have stripped the Gloriavale commune's charity arm of tax-exempt status. The government’s Charities Registration Board said Tuesday that the group’s charitable status will be revoked for three years beginning Sept. 23.
New Zealand commune’s funding trust loses charity status over child labor and other misconduct – BishopAccountability.org
The charity arm of a cloistered New Zealand commune was stripped of its tax-exempt status Tuesday after an investigation found the trust’s funds enabled “serious wrongdoing” by the religious group, including the use of child labor and failing to report sexual crime. Gloriavale, a conservative Christian sect, is based on a sprawling ranch on New Zealand’s South Island, where about 600 people live on land owned by the Christian Church Community Tr…
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