In the rooftop lounge of a hotel in Blantyre, a city in southern Malawi, three young men meet to share a difficult story with openDemocracy. They appear nervous, even fearful. One frequently checks his phone, reluctant to engage in conversation. One looks on absent-mindedly. One speaks in very low tones, all the while avoiding eye contact. Despite their fears, they want to share their story – they are keen that the world knows what happened to them, that justice is delivered.
The men are accusing Christian missionary Jan Wim Akster, a Dutch national, of sexually abusing them while they were bursary students and employees at the Timotheos Foundation in Malawi, where Akster was finance director.
The Dutch Christian charity – funded by donors based mostly in the Netherlands, the US and Canada – offers education bursaries and other support to vulnerable children and young people in Malawi’s Chiradzulu and Nsanje districts, in the south of the country. Its website says it “addresses poverty, supports local communities in need, and brings God’s word to local Malawians”.
