Archbishop Denies Any Cover-Ups

3AW
April 17, 2012

http://www.3aw.com.au/blogs/breaking-news-blog/archbishop-denies-any-coverups/20120417-1x4gb.html


[with audio]

UPDATE: Premier Ted Baillieu and Victorian Attorney-General Robert Clark have announced a parliamentary inquiry following allegations poor handling of claims sexual abuse and suicides within the Catholic Church.

Mr Clark said the inquiry will investigate the practices, policies and protocols of religious and non-government organisations for the handling of allegations of criminal abuse of children by staff within their organisation.

The government decided upon a parliamentary inquiry over a Royal Commission in order for the process to be less intrusive and legalisic.

EARLIER: The Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne has denied the church have been covering up incidences of sexual abuse after last week's astonishing claim from the Victoria Police.

Catholic Archbishop Denis Hart told Neil Mitchell that since 1996 the Melbourne Catholic Church has "never covered up any paedophile".

"I emphatically agree that it is the job of the police to investigate crime. That's their Role, but when a victim comes - this is the difficult point - to the independent commissioner he comes in a special kind of confidence" he said.

"The problem is that many victims don't want to go to the Police, either because they've been before, or the offender is dead, or because the possibility of a court investigation and so on is so traumatic."

"We have always said we would help and support them to go to the police."

LISTEN BELOW: Catholic Archbishop Denis Hart speaks with Neil Mitchell

The Archbishop's staunch defence of the Victorian Catholic Church's protocols and procedures are in response to Deputy Commissioner Graham Ashton's comments on 3AW last week that he "can't think of a single referral we've had from the Catholic Church in the last couple of years I've been around".

Deputy Commissioner Ashton said that while it's possible issues may had previously been referred to the police by the Catholic Church, he was unable to recall any instance in which this had occurred.