GUAM
Radio New Zealand
[with audio]
From Dateline Pacific
A bill that would enable victims of historical sexual abuse in Guam to file civil action is a step closer to becoming law.
A victims advocate says it could have tremendous implications for the Catholic Church which has been hit by more allegations of abuse by Guam’s Archbishop and other clergy members.
Jo O’Brien has more
TRANSCRIPT
“My name is Ramon Afaisan de Plata. When I was 10 years old in March 1964 I witnessed Pale Antonio Cruz and Anthony Apuron molest an altar boy.”
The latest accusation of sexual abuse made against Guam’s Archbishop Anthony Apuron who was a seminarian at the time, and a now deceased priest, Reverend Antonio Cruz. During a media conference posted on the Pacific Daily News website, 62 year-old Ramon De Plata went on to describe how he saw Anthony Apuron performing oral sex on the boy, who was then just 10 years-old.
The allegation of abuse in the 1960s follows four earlier claims the Archbishop molested or raped altar boys in the 1970s. Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests spokesperson Joelle Casteix says the fresh allegation suggests the abuse was more widespread.
“If it goes as far back as the 1960s we’re going to see that there was a web of abuse and coverup that went back much bigger and much further than we really even know right now.”
The most recent allegations come as Guam’s legislature has unanimously approved a bill that would lift the two-year statute of limitations for filing civil action in sexual abuse cases. The bill would allow civil action to be taken against alleged perpetrators of historical abuse and the institutions that protected them. Joelle Casteix says that makes it very powerful, enabling victims to access church files, and force church officials to reveal what they know about abuse under oath.
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