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Rockhampton Catholic diocese's new plan to handle child abuse allegations
By William Rollo
[with pdf] The Catholic Church has outlined a series of new measures to handle allegations of child abuse in central Queensland. The Rockhampton diocese has been under scrutiny over its response to systemic child abuse at St Joseph's Orphanage at Neerkol, near Rockhampton, up until the 1970s. The church has established a hotline for abuse victims in central Queensland, will run regular listening sessions for victims, and a new response coordinator will handle any allegations of abuse in the diocese. Rockhampton Bishop Michael McCarthy hoped the measures made it easier for victims to come forward. "While I'm waiting for the royal commission to hand down its recommendations, I think it's important that we continue to forge ahead and make sure our church is safe for our children," he said. Allan Alloway suffered horrific sexual and physical abuse as a resident at the Neerkol orphanage. He cautiously welcomed the appointment. "Isn't it amazing how when good, genuine people decide that enough is enough," he said. "I congratulate him [Bishop McCarthy], if he can pull it off. But he's got a big job ahead of him. "The abuse occurred in my opinion because of the rotten system and bureaucrats, the public servants of the day were too damn busy protecting themselves." Bob Cox, who gave evidence to the royal commission hearing in 2013, was abused at number of Queensland institutions including Westbrook near Toowoomba in the 1960s. He said abuse victims should not be afraid to speak out. "The people that were abused, if they can get it out in the open it's going to clear a lot off their minds and give them relief in the long run," he said. "It's something that just doesn't leave you, it stays with you for the rest of their life."
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