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	Bishops Told US Abuse Was in the Past -- One of So Many Untruths Irish Independent July 14, 2011 http://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/bishops-told-us-abuse-was-in-the-past-one-of-so-many-untruths-2821059.html WHEN the Ferns Report was published in 2005, Catholic bishops declared that the cover-up of allegations of child sexual abuse was a thing of the past. They pointed to the various church guidelines, starting with 'Child Sexual Abuse: Framework For A Church Response', which was published in 1996. The bishops insisted that where it was known or suspected that abuse of a child had taken place, the matter would be reported to civil authorities. They said the same when the Ryan and Murphy Reports were published in 2009. Abuse was all in the past, they claimed, pointing to their guidelines. Now, of course, we know that it wasn't in the past at all. The Cloyne Report confirms what I have always believed -- Catholic bishops simply cannot be trusted with the safety, welfare and protection of children. In this report, we learn that the response of the Diocese of Cloyne to complaints and allegations of clerical child sexual abuse in the period 1996 to 2009 was both inadequate and inappropriate. Bishop John Magee accepted the 1996 Framework Document and promised to implement it. He didn't do so. Instead, we are told that Bishop Magee had little real interest in its implementation for most of the time that he led the Cloyne diocese. He allowed the authority of the diocese, in respect of child protection and allegations of sexual abuse, to be exercised for that period by others, in particular Monsignor O'Callaghan, the Vicar-General of the diocese. The report tells us that Mgr O'Callaghan acted in what he perceived to be the best interests of the church. Bishop Magee told the Minister for Children that the Framework Document guidelines were in place and being fully complied with. This was untrue. The same can be said of his assurances to the HSE in 2007. In its first attempt at an 'audit', the HSE was informed by Bishop Magee at that time that the diocese reported allegations of child sexual abuse to the civil authorities, in keeping with the State's child-protection guidelines, 'Children First'. This was also untrue. It is clear from the report that the Diocese of Cloyne, while publicly supportive of the procedures outlined in the Framework Document, was never genuinely committed to their implementation. The main person involved, Mgr O'Callaghan, clearly was not supportive of them. It is therefore not surprising that the procedures were never properly implemented. Bishop Magee must take primary responsibility for this failure. The fact that the Catholic Church in Cloyne had no interest in implementing child-protection guidelines is, I believe, typical of the attitude of the rest of the Irish Catholic bishops, with the notable exception of Archbishop Diarmuid Martin. The bishops told us in 2009 that the cover-up of allegations, as revealed in the Murphy Report about the Archdiocese of Dublin, was typical of a culture of cover-up that existed throughout the Catholic Church here. There is now a case for investigating every diocese in the country. It should be remembered from reading all of the reports that for most victims the only justice they receive is the publication of the reports. In most cases, priests have not been prosecuted for the offences alleged and in no case has a member of the Catholic hierarchy ever been prosecuted for covering up the allegations. For that reason and because in so many dioceses around the country the same bishops who endangered children in the past are still responsible for the safety of children in most schools, a wider investigation would be welcome. However, we do not need any more reports to tell us what we must do in response to these latest revelations. FIRSTLY, it is imperative that in future victims, people with allegations to make and those with concerns regarding child protection that need addressing should always go to the civil authorities. Catholic bishops simply cannot be trusted with these concerns or allegations -- that must surely be clear to most people by now. I, along with many others, have long called for the State's child-protection guidelines, 'Children First', to be put on a statutory basis. I welcome the commitment of the Minister for Children, Frances Fitzgerald, to have this done without delay. I also welcome the additional new commitment of Justice Minister Alan Shatter to introduce legislation which will make it a criminal offence for anyone not to pass information on to gardai about the possible sexual abuse of a child.
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