AUSTRALIA
ABC News
By Jeff Waters
The Victorian Parliament’s inquiry into the handling of child abuse by religious and other organisations has made 15 recommendations to the Government, several of which are likely to be strongly opposed by the Roman Catholic Church.
The two-volume report entitled Betrayal of Trust was tabled in the State Parliament’s Upper House this morning.
Among the recommendations is a call to change laws to ensure anyone failing to report serious child abuse is guilty of an offence.
The Catholic Church hierarchy has always insisted that information gathered by priests in the confessional should remain secret.
The report also recommends the creation of new criminal offences of “grooming” children and “endangerment” where figures of authority within institutions can be sanctioned for not taking enough precautions.
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