AUSTRALIA
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The formal submission by Judy Courtin (see previous posting), a Monash University researcher, to the Australian Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, is based on interviews with many victims, lawyers and victims’ relatives and support persons. It is both interesting and informative, and represents one of the few studies anywhere on the theme of “Sexual Assaults and the Catholic Church: Are Victims Finding Justice?” (That is her doctoral thesis’ title).
Her submission complements and supports the general thrust of that of John and Nicola Ellis (see previous posting), on the “Towards Healing” process of the Catholic Church for dealing with allegations of abuse throughout Australia, except for Melbourne which has its own protocol, termed the “Melbourne Response”, which was established by Cardinal George Pell (of Domus Australia fame – see previous posting).
Details of the interviews contained in Ms. Courtin’s submission are not given here, but are available from her submission at http://www.childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/14-Judy-Courtin1.pdf (Only the general findings will be discussed here.)
One may as well get across early on just how she views the “Towards Healing” process by giving a few quotes from the submission. “It’s not ‘Towards Healing’; it actually takes you towards madness.” “The Towards Healing process needs to be dismantled.” “Towards Healing has failed.”
“The Towards Healing process is flawed. It is a Kangaroo court giving it the ‘opportunity to mislead and lie’. It is a sham and a con and an incredibly unsatisfactory process. It is difficult, inappropriate and insensitive. It is deficient, condescending, depersonalizing, demeaning and obscene.”
By the conclusion of the up-coming hearings, many people will surely share this perspective.
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