Tasmanian Hearing for Abuse Victims

By Doug Dingwall
The Advocate
February 21, 2014

http://www.theadvocate.com.au/story/2103277/tasmanian-hearing-for-abuse-victims/?cs=86

TASMANIA will host a public hearing for the royal commission into child sex abuse within a year.

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse confirmed it would visit Tasmania for a public hearing at a time after scheduled hearings are finished in June.

It has scheduled hearings in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia and the ACT before July.

Greens MP Paul O'Halloran on Wednesday called for the royal commission to schedule a Tasmanian public hearing. Read more here.

He said it was important for child sex abuse victims to give evidence in public hearings close to their homes, where they had support.

Upon hearing the commission would hold a Tasmanian public hearing Mr O'Halloran said it would help child sex abuse victims move on with their lives.

He has written to the royal commission asking the hearing be held in Burnie because of its history of child sex abuse.

Among recent cases, former Marist College teacher and priest Roger Michael Bellemore was found guilty in February 2008 of three counts of maintaining a sexual relationship with a young person under the age of 17.

He abused three boys at Marist College in the 1960s and 70s.

The commission has held private meetings with child sex abuse victims in Tasmania.

Business manager at the Catholic Archdiocese in Hobart Ron Ward said that it would co-operate if the royal commission held a public hearing in Tasmania.

``The general sentiment of the Catholic community in Tasmania is the royal commission is welcomed and hopefully will be cathartic and will have good outcomes,'' he said.