Vatican Strengthens Rules on Child Sex Abuse

By Christopher Emsden
Wall Street Journal
July 11, 2013

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324879504578599273666351836.html

Pope Francis on Thursday proclaimed new laws governing conduct at the Vatican in a move that makes international agreements against the sexual abuse of minors binding within the Holy See.

The pontiff personally signed what is known as a motu proprio—a directive whose name means "on his own impulse" in Latin—on criminal-law matters, making it clear they applied to all members of the Roman Curia.

The new rules mean the ecclesiastical city state is incorporating into its own legal system provisions from various conventions, including one on the rights of children and another against cruel or degrading treatment, as well ...