Sex abuse victims expect to be let down by commission evidence

By John Ferguson
Australian
July 22, 2015

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/in-depth/sex-abuse-victims-expect-to-be-let-down-by-commission-evidence/story-fngburq5-1227453067593

Victims of pedophile priests ­believe former bishop of ­Ballarat Ronald Mulkearns will not be held to account for his years of allegedly covering up child sex abuse, saying they are used to being disappointed by investigating authorities and the Catholic Church.

The royal commission into child sex abuse is yet to finalise the witness list for when it returns to Ballarat at the end of this year but Bishop Mulkearns is considered highly likely to be asked to give evidence.

A Geelong magistrate’s decision this week to call Bishop Mulkearns as a witness for the committal hearing of an alleged pedophile priest has raised the possibility in survivors’ minds of gaining some answers for why the abuse lasted as long as it did.

Bishop Mulkearns served as the bishop of Ballarat between 1971-97 and oversaw the movement of Australia’s worst pedophile priest, Gerald Ridsdale, from parish to parish when complaints about his offending were made.

Abuse survivor Andrew ­Collins told The Australian yesterday he wanted to know when Bishop Mulkearns first became aware of Ridsdale’s offending and which other offenders he knew about.