Most New Sex Abuse Complaints "Historic"

By John Ferguson
The Australian
October 24, 2013

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/state-politics/most-new-sex-abuse-complaints-historic/story-e6frgczx-1226745576352

None of the complaints was for contemporary assaults, fitting the historical pattern, which shows that the overwhelming majority of upheld cases filed have related to the decades between the 1950s and 80s. Source: Supplied

THE Catholic Church in Victoria has received nearly 100 sex abuse complaints in the past financial year as the state's inquiry into the issue appears to have prompted victims to seek redress after many years of silence.

There is now a growing body of evidence to suggest the overwhelming majority of cases relate to decades ago, suggesting that the church has faced, and dealt with, the worst of the scandal.

New figures show the church's two dispute resolution processes have received 53 new complaints in Victoria in the past financial year related to the parliamentary investigation.

Of these, only seven people have referred the matters to police, underlining the reluctance of many victims to seek justice through the drawn-out process of the courts. A further 42 complaints were made directly to church entities, such as three religious orders and the dioceses that appeared before the inquiry.

The figures released by the church show that last financial year the 53 complaints related to the church's two responses to the scandal, known as Towards Healing and the Melbourne Response.

The Melbourne Response was set up by Cardinal George Pell and covers the Archdiocese of Melbourne, the numerically dominant Catholic zone in Victoria.

None of the complaints was for contemporary assaults, fitting the historical pattern, which shows that the overwhelming majority of upheld cases filed have related to the decades between the 1950s and 80s.

Only one case of abuse has been upheld in the past 13 years and a total of 15 cases relating to the last quarter of a century.

While police have stressed the propensity for significant time lags in reporting, the church is hopeful Victoria is following the US experience, where interventions and changes to policy led to dramatically less abuse by clergy and in church institutions.

Church spokesman Shane Mackinlay said the figures supported the church view that the Melbourne Response and Towards Healing were a valid, non-adversarial option for people to consider.

Father Mackinlay said the church had expected an increase of reporting due to the state inquiry and the royal commission.

"The abuse may be historical, but the long-term suffering of victims and their families continues," he said.

"In each of these cases, the victims have come forward as adults.

"They were all abused when they were children -- often decades ago.

"The fact that the new victims are reporting historical rather than current events is a further indication that the changes we have made since the 1980s have helped prevent the appalling abuse that had occurred up to then."

Of the 18 complaints received last financial year by the Melbourne Response, 13 have so far been upheld; of the 35 complaints received by Towards Healing, 15 have so far been upheld.

The remaining five Melbourne Response complaints and the

20 Towards Healing complaints are still being considered while seven of the Towards Healing complainants have gone to the police.