GUAM
Guam Daily Post
Editorial
Gov. Eddie Calvo should sign Bill 326, the measure, which passed the Guam Legislature unanimously that would lift the statute of limitations on civil lawsuits involving child sex abuse. Archbishop Savio Hon Tai Fai, the apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Agana has urged the governor to veto the bill because he fears “the archdiocese will be will be exposed to unlimited financial liability.” That liability “will very likely” bankrupt the archdiocese, he wrote in his letter that was read to Guam congregations attending Sunday Mass this past weekend.
The governor’s legal team may find some legitimate reason to veto the bill, but it should not be because of concern about the impact on the people or institutions involved in such monstrous behavior, whether as perpetrator, facilitator or after-the-fact concealer. The sexual abuse of minors is a heinous crime and should be treated as such.
The legislation follows recent allegations of sexual abuse of altar boys by members of the clergy decades ago, but the legislation does not mention the church or any other person or institution. The archdiocese, or anyone else, will only be penalized after a trial in a court of law, in which damages and culpability must be demonstrated to the legal standard.
We presume the church or anyone else accused of wrongdoing would be treated fairly in the courts. But fairness is also owed to the victims; they are also due their day in court.
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