BishopAccountability.org
	Vatican Claims Transparency Amid Laundering Probe; SNAP Responds SNAP September 22, 2010 http://www.snapnetwork.org/snap_statements/2010_statements/092110_vatican_claims_transparency_amid_laundering_probe_snap_responds.htm Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790 cell, 314 645 5915 home, SNAPclohessy@aol.com) Again, a Vatican official is accused of not being “transparent” and again, his fellow Vatican officials immediately rally behind him. (According to the AP, the Vatican says it has “full trust” in the chair of the Vatican bank which is under investigation by police.) It’s sad to see Catholic officials immediately and publicly defending a colleague early in a police probe, long before the evidence has been fully gathered and analyzed. Vatican staff see to take this same reflexive, self-serving stance in nearly every criminal probe its employees face, whether financial or sexual. It serves to intimidate others with information into staying silent. We encourage the Pope’s top advisors to withhold comment and judgment in such cases. If they must speak, we urge them to urge others who can shed light on serious allegations of wrongdoing to come forward and help police and prosecutors resolve the suspicions. (SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We’ve been around for 22 years and have more than 9,000 members. Despite the word “priest” in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org) Contact David Clohessy (314-566-9790 cell, SNAPclohessy@aol.com), Barbara Blaine (312-399-4747, SNAPblaine@gmail.com), Peter Isely (414-429-7259, peterisely@yahoo.com), Barbara Dorris (314-862-7688 home, 314-503-0003 cell, SNAPdorris@gmail.com)
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