AUSTRALIA
The Guardian (UK)
David Marr
theguardian.com, Wednesday 2 October 2013
The Catholic church has admitted grave faults in its dealings with victims of sex abuse by priests. The peak body that represents the church, the Truth Justice and Healing Council, has reported shoddy record-keeping, secrecy, inconsistent outcomes and lack of effective supervision of the dioceses and religious orders responsible for the care of victims.
These admissions come in a submission to the royal commission into institutional responses to child sex abuse, which is soon to examine the church’s Towards Healing process that offers care and compensation to victims of priests everywhere in Australia but the parishes of Melbourne.
“The submission presents to the royal commission a warts and all approach that outlines the strengths but also recognises how Towards Healing operates,” Francis Sullivan, the chief executive of the Truth, Justice and Healing Council, which was set up last year to co-ordinate the church’s response to the royal commission, told Guardian Australia.
“We need to put in place much more rigorous, contemporary best-practice governance arrangements including accountability for all church authorities about the operation of Towards Healing, the safeguards that are in the Catholic church for children, the measures to prevent sex abuse and the achievement of standards across the whole church.”
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