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	Chilean Priest Karadima Fit to Stand Trial for Sex Abuse By Mark Briggs and Ignacio Gallegos Santiago Times April 20, 2011 http://www.santiagotimes.cl/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=21275:chilean-priest-karadima-fit-to-stand-trial-for-sex-abuse-&catid=1:other&Itemid=38 Psychological testing by the government’s legal medical service (SML) has determined that the priest Fernando Karadima, 80, is fit to stand trial on charges of sexually abusing underage boys during the 1980s. Due to the defendant’s age, there were concerns that the trial could collapse once underway if the defense claimed he was unfit to participate in his defense. His lawyers had previously supported the psychological tests but had also spoken to the judge concerning their client’s physical health. According to the SML’s report to the judge late last week, Karadima “understands reality” and has no psychological diseases that would diminish his responsibility before the law. Previous attempts to bring Karadima to trial have failed for a variety of reasons, and prosecutors are determined to ensure nothing gets in the way this time. The priest, who was the pastor at El Bosque Church in the upmarket Providencia area of Santiago, has already been found guilty in a Vatican investigation. He has twice before appeared before a judge in Chile, pleading not guilty on both occasions. An article by Cipher, the Chilean center for investigative journalism, claims that tests conducted on Karadima suggest homosexual tendencies as well as a thirst for power. The same article quotes former seminarians saying the priest deliberately isolated them from their families and presented himself as a messianic figure. One former pupil is quoted as saying leaving the circle of Karadima’s control was like emerging from “The Matrix,” a reference to the Keanu Reeves film in which humanity is enslaved in a dream state. Cardinal Francisco Javier Errazuriz, archbishop of Santiago at the time when the allegations first came to light, made public apology to the Karadima’s victims on Sunday. Released in the national daily El Mercurio, the open letter said in part, “For all the suffering that I unwillingly caused, I sincerely apologize.” Admitting he first received the accusations in 2003, the cardinal said he hadn’t acted at the time because he didn’t believe them. James Hamilton, one of five men who claimed to have been abused by Karadima, called Errazuriz “a criminal” on national television, saying, “He did nothing to stop what was happening.” (ST, March 22) It is unclear what role Errazuriz will play in the upcoming trial. “I am a citizen of Chile and (prosecutor Jessica Gonzalez) can ask for my testimony, or anything she wants,” the cardinal said. “What I can give her, that's another story, because I have no papers or documents, and some things I forget.” SOURCES: EL MERCURIO, LA TERCERA, CIPHER By Mark Briggs and Ignacio Gallegos ( editor@santiagotimes.cl This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )
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