Abuse Victim Calls for Church Clean-Out

By Patrick Caruana
Wa Today
March 26, 2013

http://www.watoday.com.au/breaking-news-national/abuse-victim-calls-for-church-cleanout-20130326-2grdc.html

A man who was abused for years at a Catholic orphanage has urged a Victorian parliamentary inquiry to turn the church "upside down" to take the rot out.

Gordon Hill was physically, mentally and sexually abused at the hands of nuns and priests at a Ballarat orphanage more than 50 years ago.

He was repeatedly assaulted and forced to do manual labour, he told the inquiry into sexual abuse within religious organisations.

When inquiry chair Georgie Crozier asked what he now wanted from the church, Mr Hill was unequivocal.

"They should be turned upside down and all the rot bloody well taken out," he told the inquiry on Tuesday.

"A lot of the cardinals, and priests and bishops should get out from behind their robes and admit what happened."

Chris Wilding, who formed victims' group Broken Rites, told the inquiry the church was simply not interested in resolving issues of sexual abuse.

"They are an extremely powerful institution that doesn't feel that they owe you anything," she said.

"They are above you, they are not answerable to you and they're going to go on their merry way."

Ms Wilding called on the committee to recommend criminal charges against bishops who had knowingly moved sex offenders to different locations.

"Lock the bastards up," she said.

Ms Wilding said the inquiry's work would be difficult because of the church's links to powerful institutions.

"The tentacles of bishops, archbishops and cardinals reach into every agency of power," she said.

"The crimes of clerical abuse could not have been smothered and the spot fires extinguished without the willing co-operation of persons in other agencies of power."

Gabrielle Short, who was physically abused at a Broadmeadows orphanage, told the inquiry that she felt trapped at the time.

"We had nobody to tell and lived in so much fear," she said.

The inquiry resumes next week.

A man who was abused for years at a Catholic orphanage has urged a Victorian parliamentary inquiry to turn the church "upside down" to take the rot out.

Gordon Hill was physically, mentally and sexually abused at the hands of nuns and priests at a Ballarat orphanage more than 50 years ago.

He was repeatedly assaulted and forced to do manual labour, he told the inquiry into sexual abuse within religious organisations.

When inquiry chair Georgie Crozier asked what he now wanted from the church, Mr Hill was unequivocal.

"They should be turned upside down and all the rot bloody well taken out," he told the inquiry on Tuesday.

"A lot of the cardinals, and priests and bishops should get out from behind their robes and admit what happened."

Chris Wilding, who formed victims' group Broken Rites, told the inquiry the church was simply not interested in resolving issues of sexual abuse.

"They are an extremely powerful institution that doesn't feel that they owe you anything," she said.

"They are above you, they are not answerable to you and they're going to go on their merry way."

Ms Wilding called on the committee to recommend criminal charges against bishops who had knowingly moved sex offenders to different locations.

"Lock the bastards up," she said.

Ms Wilding said the inquiry's work would be difficult because of the church's links to powerful institutions.

"The tentacles of bishops, archbishops and cardinals reach into every agency of power," she said.

"The crimes of clerical abuse could not have been smothered and the spot fires extinguished without the willing co-operation of persons in other agencies of power."

Gabrielle Short, who was physically abused at a Broadmeadows orphanage, told the inquiry that she felt trapped at the time.

"We had nobody to tell and lived in so much fear," she said.

The inquiry resumes next week.