Christina Krüsi

Christina Krüsi
File:Christina Krusi Speaker 2014 wiki small.jpg Krusi - speaking engagement
Born	(1968-07-15) July 15, 1968 Zurich, Switzerland
Occupation	Author, Artist
Spouse	Roland Weber (2nd marriage)
Children	2 (Raphael and Timon)
Website
http://www.christina-kruesi.com/ & (Artist website: www.ckruesi.ch/ )

Christina Krüsi was born July 15, 1968 in Zurich, Switzerland, the second of six children. In 1966, Krusi's parents moved the family to the Amazon rainforest of Bolivia to work for the American Christian Missionary Society, SIL/Wycliffe and translate the bible into the local Chiquitano and other Indian dialects. The base for the mission was located in Tumi Chucua in the country's northeast corner.

In 1979, the family returned to Switzerland where Krusi completed her Swiss education requirements, later married and moved to the Ivory Coast of Africa (returning two years later due to civil unrest). In 2003, Krusi joined several childhood friends with experiences of alleged abuses in Bolivia and approached Wycliffe/SIL with the claim they had failed in their responsibility to protect. Formal apologies were issued and new protective measures were installed following the investigation. Krusi went on to complete two Master's Degrees and develop her art, music and literary work. She also became a consultant in conflict management and motivational speaker, published her memoirs, Paradise Was My Hell (Droemer Knaur, July 2013), and created the Christina Krusi Foundation for child protection from violence and abuse through public awareness. In April 2014, Swiss Television debuted a documentary of Krusi's abuse and alleged witness of a ritual child murder, in the Bolivian jungle. She remains in Zurich, Switzerland with her family.

Life 1966-2002

Amazon Rainforest

Native woman of Bolivia

Krusi's family journeyed to the Bolivian rainforest under the guidance of Wycliffe Switzerland, (one of 105 independent Wycliffe organizations within the Wycliffe Global Alliance umbrella of SIL International). Wycliffe works in conjunction with local organizations "for Bible translation in Africa, Asia and Latin America," and in Krusi's case, partnered with SIL International, "a faith-based nonprofit organization committed to serving language communities worldwide as they build capacity for sustainable language development" (4,400+ staff in 100 countries).

Krusi 1978 Tumi Chucua, Bolivia

rusi had returned to Switzerland with her family in 1979 at 11 years old (refer below for Krusi and abuse in Bolivia). During the following four years (1980–84), Krusi finished middle school in Diessenhofen, Switzerland and then attended art school at Stuttgart/DE and St. Gallen for two years before receiving teacher training at Amriswil. The same year (1987 and now 19 years old), she married a man five years her senior who was also from the Christian community. Together they had two children (sons Raphael and Timon). In 1992, the family moved to Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire for two years where Krusi worked as an art teacher and illustrator. However, with the threat of civil war in 1994, they returned to Switzerland. For the next three years (1994–97), Krusi became an adult education drawing teacher as well as head mistress for the local Marthalen Senior High School in Zurich. She also developed her art and education, taking sculpture and anatomy courses in Schaffhausen (Switzerland)and Stuttgart, Germany, and attending the Vocational School for Design in Zurich.

Zurich, Switzerland

Abidjan, Ivory Coast

Book/Documentary: Abuse in Bolivia

In 2002, and now in her mid-30's, Krusi began working with other abuse victims in Bolivia, and over the course of a year and a half (and with help from a mediator) together approached SIL/Wycliffe in 2004 at an arranged meeting in the United States. In turn, SIL commenced an investigation (completed in 2005) which confirmed the abuse validity but did not publicly reveal what abuses were committed, by whom, or against how many of the women. Wycliffe also released a formal apology to the women (including regrets that the alleged offenders could not be prosecuted due to time-barred restrictions and some alleged perpetrators had died) and implemented policy changes for stricter measures to protect children, including assistance from MIRA, a Swiss-based organization for sustainable prevention of sexual exploitation and The Child Safety and Protection Network In 2013, Krusi published her biography, Paradise Was My Hell, which detailed her abuse, including how the perpetrators marked (cut) her and other victims on both knees to "declare (them) fair game...sex slaves," and details of repeated rapes "before piano lessons...after school...during Sunday school...often in the public toilets of the missionary village and sometimes drugged her with ether." Krusi also contends that all victims were put under tremendous pressure by the abusers not to talk to anybody or very bad things would happen, and denies that her abuse experiences are repressed memories because she recorded them in a diary at 13 years old (and discussed them with her mother at 16). The diary was never made public.

Sunset Tumi Chucua (taken by Krusi 2013)

Krusi in Art Studio

In 2014, a documentary of Krusi's abuse experiences was filmed and aired by Swiss Television (SRF1) The SIL's response to the documentary was aggressive and skeptical. For example, Keith Robinson, SIL Global Child Safety Officer noted to Blick.ch's Ralph Hennecke: "virtually all offenders deny the crimes...[and] many are now deceased. Therefore SIL has no way to get them to the process.. [admitting however] if it actually happened, it would be totally horrible...But [SIL] does not have matching statements that really something happened." Krusi responded in the same article with "I know of at least 18 victims and I am still in touch with many. Unfortunately, few have the courage to talk about their experiences." As well, Hugo Stamm, author of several books on 'indoctrine' and editor for Tages-Anzeiger news in Zurich, noted "The parents refused to speak to journalists about the events in Bolivia" nor, as Stamm implies, supportive of Krusi public abuse revelations. Wycliffe's response was conciliatory to Krusi ("We congratulate Christina Krüsi for courage to face the trauma of her childhood") however disappointed "the film did not address why the violators were not punished" (see above). They also reacted strongly to the documentary's sub-title, I am no longer a victim - abused in the name of God with Wycliffe Switzerland's website stating: "Such atrocities can not be done in the name of God. The name of God has been abused by the perpetrators as an excuse." Krusi's abuse documentary also detailed a ritual child murder which was not included in the SIL/Wycliffe studies from 2003 (depicted with overtones of Satanic Ritual though not labelled as such by either Krusi or Wycliffe/SIL)"because the facts [were] insufficient...[but] have changed with the release of Christina Krüsis book. Our partner organization is currently working...to organize an independent investigation."

Life 2003-Present

Although Krusi's marriage ended in 2002, she continued as head mistress at Marthalen High School (until 2006) and participated in art/poetry/music projects and exhibitions, using her painting as a creative outlet, and between 2007–12, she completed two Masters Degrees: Management Culture from Zurich University of Applied Sciences (AW Zurich) in 2007 and Educational Management at Zurich University of Teacher Education (PH Zurich - as part of the MAS) in 2012.

Krusi's home Winterthur, Switzerland

She also assumed a management position for a kindergarten-to-senior school in Winterthur, Switzerland, introduced MAP Magazine for artist professionals in conjunctions with Open Doors Winterthur, implemented an addiction and violence prevention program (QUIMS: Quality In Multicultural Schools) for the Winterthur Töss School District, and expanded both her consulting work and sculpture/painting. Also, in addition to releasing her book, in 2013 Krusi co-founded (with supporter Gudrun Ruttkowski) the Christina Krüsi Foundation for the protection of children, which supports people and projects that raise public awareness - "opens society's eyes" to the issues of child abuse (the Foundation receives a portion of Krusi's book and art sales) and completed a children's book. The same year, Krusi received a Swiss Federal Diploma in Conflict Management and Mediation (ZHAW) which broadened her consulting to include lectures and seminars in German and English on resilience, creative strategy building and motivational training.

Krusi currently resides in Winterthur, Switzerland, a suburb of Zurich, and lives with her second husband and two grown children. She continues to develop her art, professional and foundation works.