AUSTRALIA
The Age
August 10, 2015
Judy Courtin
Survivors of clergy sex in Ballarat are unhappy with the unexpected announcement last week by the royal commission that hearings scheduled for November will be held in Melbourne, instead of their home city. This is not the only reason, though, for despondency, hurt and exasperation in the Ballarat survivor community.
In 2011 and 2012, The Age published a series of important articles reporting on the premature deaths, including by suicide, of 43 men who allegedly had been sexually assaulted as children by since-convicted Catholic clergy paedophiles, including Gerald Ridsdale and Robert Best.
The findings of Operation Plangere are flawed, worthless and misleading.
There were mounting calls at the time, including by this author, for the Victorian coroner to reopen these 43 cases based on new information – the common history of alleged clergy child sexual assault of these men.
In July 2012 the coroner, having considered the matter, referred it back to Victoria Police to investigate, and since that time victims and their families have been waiting for the findings of this critical investigation.
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The Sexual Crimes Squad of Victoria Police completed its report, known as Operation Plangere, in December 2012. It was not made public until May 2015.
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