Pope Francis holds first meeting with sex abuse victims

BBC news
July 7, 2014

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-28189906

Pope Francis has pledged a crackdown on abuse within the Church

Pope Francis has met the victims of sexual abuse by priests for the first time since his election last year.

He received the six victims - two each from Ireland, Britain and Germany - at his residence after they attended a private morning Mass in the Vatican.

The Pope has vowed to punish clergy who have abused children, describing their actions as "satanic".

The Church has been heavily criticised for failing to tackle abuse, following a series of scandals worldwide.

Some victims have also criticised Pope Francis for having failed to meet their representatives sooner.

The Pope's predecessor, Pope Benedict, met abuse victims several times on trips outside Italy.

Former envoy convicted

Pope Francis last year strengthened the Vatican's laws against child abuse.

He has also set up a committee, whose members include a cardinal and an abuse victim, to draw up plans to tackle exploitation by priests.

The committee is expected to announce on Monday that it will expand to include more members from the developing world, Reuters news agency reports.

Last month, a Vatican tribunal convicted Josef Wesolowski, a former papal envoy to the Dominican Republic, of sex abuse and stripped him of the priesthood.

Wesolowski is the highest-ranking Vatican official to have been investigated over abuse claims.