"Where Is the Dignity, the Justice, the Compassion?"

By Mark Vincent Healy
Irish Independent
September 6, 2012

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/where-is-the-dignity-the-justice-the-compassion-3221618.html

THE national audit and review of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit is to be broadly welcomed. The report's findings are an appalling litany of failures to victims and their families and to those who are no longer with us to see the report publicised.

The management of some allegations raised after 1996, when clear guidelines were established in the Catholic Church, makes for harrowing reading. It is particularly appalling that some allegations were not reported to the civil authorities for up to four years after the congregation was informed.

Consider the implications of a victim coming forward who has been horrendously damaged by sexual abuse from childhood by a member of the Spiritans (Holy Ghost Fathers) and who received no support for more than four years from the HSE or the Garda.

Rescue

It is a sentence of appalling distress and longer than any served by any convicted member of the Spiritans.

Of the 47 members of the congregation against whom allegations of child sexual abuse were raised, only three were convicted. On page 11 there is only a three to 1 ratio of abuser to victim identified which is noted throughout the report and is something that suggests many victims never came forward.

I have advocated "rescue services" and "safe space provisioning" for survivors. One cannot understate the importance in providing such services. The absence of any rescue services flies in the face of all "dignity, justice and compassion" for victims and families.

It is hard to read how little was done for victims in response to survivors on page 14 of the report and that: "There are, without doubt, victims whose abuse should have been preventable. If the Provincial at the time of receiving information . . . and in some cases direct allegations, had taken action to remove the offending priest/brother, then it is entirely reasonable to believe that some children could have been spared. This was unacceptable, and the current leadership has to carry the responsibility for the past failures of others."

The international dimension and capacity for the sexual abuse of children by members of the congregation is only briefly mentioned: "It is reasonable to believe that there are other victims of Spiritans who . . . may be located in Ireland, Canada, USA, Sierra Leone and any other country where the offenders have worked."

The impact of such a leadership failure in the Irish Province has had not only a national but an international impact.

What is glaringly absent is a clear manifesto of what actions will be taken to redress the damage inflicted on so many victims not found or even sought. It is important for the congregation to give a detailed description of its intent, how it hopes to achieve this and when it hopes to initiate such endeavours to ensure all child victims are treated with "dignity, justice and compassion".