UNITED STATES
Legal Examiner
Posted by Mike Bryant
December 24, 2013
The Pope has called for the creation of a commission investigating the sexual abuse of minors. It is good that the Pope is talking about the issue because silence has been what has been driving most of what the Church has done with this tragedy. However, what will a commission do? Will it be filled with either yes men or individuals with no authority? Will it be prevented from getting all available documents? Will there be cannon law vs. common law distinctions made that are used to prevent disclosure?
The New York Times reported on two very important reactions:
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, known as SNAP, the leading United States-based support group for clergy abuse victims, called the news a disappointment that reflected badly on the new pope. David Clohessy, executive director of the group, said the announcement suggested that the Vatican remained strongly resistant to making sexually abusive members of the clergy and their church protectors accountable to external criminal prosecution.
“A new church panel is the last thing that kids need,” Mr. Clohessy said in a telephone interview. “Church officials have mountains of information about those who have committed and those who are concealing horrible child sex crimes and cover-ups. They just have to give that information to the police.”
BishopAccountability.org, an organization that has amassed an enormous collection of documents on the abuse problem in the church, gave a cautious welcome to the announcement, but also expressed skepticism.
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