Statement – Huon Rowing Club Committee, 3 August 2022

APOLOGY from the Huon Rowing Club committee

We the Committee of the Huon Rowing Club (HRC) would like to sincerely apologise for any failings on our part in our handling of a serious sexual assault disclosed to the committee in March 2018, by Mrs. Sally Millington-Schwan.

After the disclosure of the attack which occurred at Lake Barrington 3rd March 2018, we as a committee were ignorant of the existence of the Rowing Australia Member Protection Policy (RAMPP) and of our obligations under it.

We were alerted that we had obligations under the RAMPP by Mr. Phil Schwan in July 2018, but we failed to inform ourselves of some of those obligations, immediately or within a reasonable period of time thereafter. We disregarded those obligations, and for that we apologise to Mr. Schwan, Mrs. Millington-Schwan, their family and all of the members of the HRC past and present.

We accept that our response to the complaint, including oversight of Mr. Driessen’s handling of it, was inadequate, and for this we apologise.

We must do better and promise to work with both Rowing Tasmania and Rowing Australia to ensure compliance with all of our obligations regarding our members, and we have agreed to do so.

We understand that discrimination, harassment and bullying of members who make a complaint, as well as those who support a complainant, is completely unacceptable and inappropriate and a serious breach of the RAMPP and may have impacted the good reputation of rowing in Australia.

We hope that rowing clubs nationally will be able to learn from our inadequate handling of a sexual assault within our rowing club, and like our committee, work towards improving trauma management responses towards victims of sexual violence.

It must be acknowledged that Mr. Schwan and Ms. Millington-Schwan have never requested anything other than for us to hold ourselves accountable in regard to this matter.

On behalf of the Huon Rowing Club, we would like to state that we are all in full support of the above apology.

John Driessen HRC President, Lisa Cooper HRC Secretary, Caroline Booker HRC Treasurer.

HRC Committee Members; Ann Driessen, Bruce Heron, Jenna Driessen, Paul Newbon, Neville Bennett, Karen Newbon, Graeme Denny, Peter Shield.

Statement – John Driessen President Huon Rowing Club, 3 August 2022

APOLOGY From John Driessen, President Huon Rowing Club

I would like to sincerely apologise to Mrs. Sally Millington-Schwan, Mr. Phil Schwan and their family, and any Huon Rowing Club (HRC) members who may have been affected or impacted by any failings on my behalf in the handling of Mrs. Millington-Schwan’s complaint of sexual assault disclosed to me in March 2018.

The criminal actions of Timothy Leslie Brown. Huon Rowing Club’s Junior Coach, Treasurer, Vice President and Senior Committee Member, are grossly unacceptable and abhorrent which I condemn, in the strongest terms. His criminal actions resulted in the Supreme Court of Tasmania convicting Timothy Leslie Brown for indecent assault and rape, and sentencing him to 4 years imprisonment, in addition to being placed on the sexual offenders register for 7 years from his release date.

Although as President of the Huon Rowing Club I accepted the resignation of Tim Brown after the attack was first disclosed to me, to the extent that Sally and her family have had to endure a further four years of trauma, ostracism, humiliation, and isolation in our community as a result of my handling of the Rowing Australia Member Protection Policy (RAMPP), I apologise.

I would like to reassure Sally, Phil and their family that it was not my intention to add to this further trauma and I apologise for not having had a better understanding of how to manage the situation I do believe that the HRC has grown over this period enough to know that certain situations which had arisen should have been handled in a better way and I sincerely apologise for our failings in this matter and genuinely hold myself accountable for those failings

I acknowledge and accept any consequences resulting to Sally, Phil and their family which arose from any failing on my part regarding the obligations imposed on me by the RAMPP.

As a direct result of Mr. Schwan and Mrs. Millington-Schwan’s complaint about the organisational response to a serious sexual assault, the Huon Rowing Club has already made some changes to its awareness strategies and put in place checks and balances for both athletes and coaches.

I extend to Sally, Phil, and their family our best wishes for the future and encourage every member of the rowing community to do the same. I fully acknowledge there is no room for harassment, discrimination, or bullying towards individuals in the community who discloses sexual assaults, and that these individuals should be congratulated for their courage and strength. This is very important in order to alter current, cultural attitudes regarding sexual violence against women which exist in our community.

I am now, four years after this incident, committed to working with Rowing Tasmania and Rowing Australia to further improve our management of member protection cases. The club intends to cooperate fully with Rowing Tasmania in the implementation of the protocols to be introduced to all rowing clubs, designed to ensure a better understanding of and compliance with the Member Protection Policy in order to best protect and keep safe our members and the rowing community.

Yours sincerely, John Driessen

President Huon Rowing Club