Sex Abuse: Top Catholic Priest Calls for Inquiry on Assaults
By Mandy Squires
GEELONG'S top Catholic priest has called for an independent inquiry into the church's treatment of sexual abuse complaints. St Mary's parish priest Father Kevin Dillon yesterday said the church's moral authority had been "compromised to an extraordinary degree" by its failure to independently review the handling of sexual abuse claims. "People from both within and outside the church are saying as long as you haven't got this right ... then why should we listen to anything else you say and that's fair comment," he said. The church had a duty of care to the people who had suffered abuse at the hands of Catholic clergy, teachers and carers to ensure the processes it had in place to handle complaints were just, transparent and compassionate, he said. What are your thoughts on this story? Tell us using the feedback form below The only way it could ensure that was the case was to independently review the current system, Fr Dillon said. "We, as a church, should be seeking not just to be able to say 'we're not hiding anything', and for that to be the truth, but we should also be able to say we are doing everything possible to make sure the best possible system is in place," Fr Dillon said. "We're talking about something which is totally foreign to the mission of the church, which has occurred by our people, on our watch, within our ranks." It was "more than arguable" abuse cases had not been handled in the best possible way by the church in the past, he said. The independent review of leadership and performance at the Geelong Football Club in 2006 was an example of how effective an external, objective assessment of operations could be, Fr Dillon said. "The footy club has never looked back since," he said. "I would suggest that nearly every business, in the pursuit of excellence, would seek assistance through an independent, outside review to make sure they are doing things in the best possible way." Fr Dillon said it was his experience priests who had the most personal contact with abuse victims were the biggest agitators for change. He added he had heard the stories of about 20 victims and understood what a "totally abhorrent" and painful experience it was for victims and their families to suffer and report abuse. Since 1996, the Melbourne Catholic archdiocese has used its own commissioner to investigate sexual abuse complaints. More than 300 sexual abuse victims have received compensation from the Catholic Church. mandy.squires@geelongadvertiser.com.au
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