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Child sex abuse survivors say paedophile priest is protecting church
By Oliver Milman
Survivors of child sexual abuse and their supporters have poured scorn on the evidence given by Gerald Ridsdale, accusing the convicted paedophile of protecting the hierarchy of the Catholic church. Ridsdale, 81, gave evidence to the royal commission into institutional responses to child sex abuse via video link from prison, where he is serving time after being convicted of more than 140 offences against children as young as four over three decades until the 1980s. Ridsdale repeatedly said he did not recall key details of his interaction with Catholic clergy as he was being moved around parishes in Victoria where he committed the sexual offences. The former Catholic priest said he did not recall living with George Pell, Australia’s most senior cleric, nor why Pell agreed to appear in court as a character reference for him in 1994. Ridsdale told the hearing, held in the Victorian city of Ballarat, said that shortly after taking up a posting in Apollo Bay, he spoke to a man who “said they are saying things in the pub about you and kids so I thought it was time to get out, so I put in for a transfer.” Despite being granted an early transfer, Ridsdale said he does not remember speaking to any senior church officials about this or the reasons why he was allowed to move onto another parish. The Ballarat area was the scene for numerous child sex offences committed by members of the Catholic church, some of whom were imprisoned. Pell, now a senior cleric in the Vatican, has agreed to appear at the hearing in person after being accused by an abuse survivor of attempting to buy his silence in the 1990s. Judy Courtin, a lawyer and supporter of the abuse victims, said: “Ridsdale and his selective memory just isn’t credible. I just can’t believe it. “He’s remembering acute details about certain events but at the same time he has no recollection at all about living with George Pell here in Ballarat, for example. “When it comes to anyone in the hierarchy, he has no memory at all. It’s like the final kick in the guts for the survivors. He’s 81, he’ll probably die in prison, so what does he have to lose? Why doesn’t he fess up and tell the truth?” Courtin said Pell should not be praised for offering to give evidence and that the former archbishop of Sydney should be in Ballarat already to support victims and their families. Domenico Millivoj Micich, who was sexually assaulted as a child and is supporting other survivors, said: “This is a very traumatic experience for those who knew Ridsdale all these years. “I thought he was still guarded and not really contrite. He can hide behind his age and say he can’t remember.” Ridsdale will give evidence throughout Wednesday and Thursday.
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