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Catholic Sex Abuse

spud_meister

spud_meister

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So the Victorian state government recently completed an inquiry into child sex abuse at the hands of non-government organisations. The Catholic church turned out to be the biggest offender:
Cookies must be enabled. | The Australian
that Catholic clergy in Australia are responsible for six times more child sexual abuse than all the other churches combined.
Click to expand...

The culture of cover-up in the church has lead to widespread offenses, with offenders being hidden from authorities and shuffled out of jurisdictions, with absolutely no concern shown for the welfare of the thousands of victims of Catholic clergy.

The report from the government made 15 recommendations to create or alter legislation to ensure that offenders are more easily caught, and those involved in a cover-up are liable for their actions.
No Cookies | Herald Sun
BETRAYAL OF TRUST REPORT: THE KEY RECOMMENDATIONS
1. Consider law changes to ensure anyone who fails to report a serious indictable offence involving child abuse will be guilty of an offence.
2. Consider creating a criminal offence relating to "child endangerment" in organisations, for when someone in authority consciously disregards a substantial risk that might endanger a child's life, health, welfare, morals, or emotional well-being.
3. Consider changing laws to create a criminal offence of grooming, even when sexual abuse has not necessarily occurred.
4. Consider requiring non-government
organisations that receive some government funding or assistance to be incorporated and adequately insured.
5. Work with the Australian Government to require religious and other non-government organisations that engage with children to adopt incorporated legal structures.
6. Consider amending Limitation of Actions laws to exclude criminal child abuse.
7. Consider amending Victims of Crime Assistance laws to specify that no time limits apply to applications for assistance.
8. Review the Wrongs Act and identify whether laws should change to ensure organisations are held accountable and have a legal duty to take reasonable care to prevent criminal child abuse.
9. Review the functions of the Victims of Crime Assistance Tribunal (VOCAT) to consider
its capacity to administer a specific scheme for victims of criminal child abuse.
10. Authorise an independent statutory body with relevant powers and resources to oversee and monitor the handling of allegations of child abuse by relevant government departments, religious and non-government organisations.
11. Review the current Education Department procedures for responding to allegations of all forms of criminal child abuse within all Victorian schools.
12. Clarify the requirements for religious organisations to ensure ministers of religion have a current Working with Children check, and monitor compliance.
13. Review contractual and funding arrangements with education and community service organisations that work with children to ensure they have a minimum standard for ensuring a child-safe environment.

14. Identify an effective approach for supporting peak bodies to build preventive capacity in sectors that interact with children.
15. Ensure non-government organisations have high quality advice about preventing criminal child abuse.
Click to expand...
 
I like a lot of the suggestions, but parts of that list frighten me, and would involve serious oversteps on the part of the government.

How does one even legally define "grooming" in a fashion that does not include innocent-- and beneficial!-- involvement in childrens' lives? And what "incorporate legal structures" does the government intend to force religious and other non-government-organizations to adopt?
 
Korimyr the Rat said:
I like a lot of the suggestions, but parts of that list frighten me, and would involve serious oversteps on the part of the government.

How does one even legally define "grooming" in a fashion that does not include innocent-- and beneficial!-- involvement in childrens' lives?
Click to expand...

That one has me concerned too, I think it should be an offense in cases where abuse has occurred to make a sex offenders sentence longer, but I don't think it could be enforced otherwise.
And what "incorporate legal structures" does the government intend to force religious and other non-government-organizations to adopt?
Click to expand...

From what I've read, they'll be forcing them to take out liability insurance if they receive government funding so that the victims can sue the organisations. Apparently you can't sue an organisation if it doesn't have liability insurance, and non-profits don't have to take out the insurance prior to being set up.
 
So apart from one assuming that these people represent the divine, one must now also make do with their pedophile tendencies.
 
DDD said:
So apart from one assuming that these people represent the divine, one must now also make do with their pedophile tendencies.
Click to expand...

What? Looks like they're looking to regulate the Catholic religion. In the US, singling out a specific religion to, basically, harass would violate the 1st Amendment.
 
X Factor said:
What? Looks like they're looking to regulate the Catholic religion. In the US, singling out a specific religion to, basically, harass would violate the 1st Amendment.
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure that laws designed to protect children from rape would meet strict scrutiny. If the Catholic church doesn't want any kind of legal troubles, then it should do whatever it has to prevent its employees using the authority they gain from their position to rape children.

I'm curious, would you EVER advocate for this kind of detachment for any kind of secular organization? If this were anything but a church we were talking about, would have any qualms about doing whatever it took to protect these kids? The first amendment does not immunize religious organizations from the law. It doesn't mean they get to commit crimes with impunity. It doesn't mean they get special treatment. What are you asking for if not special treatment?
 
X Factor said:
What? Looks like they're looking to regulate the Catholic religion. In the US, singling out a specific religion to, basically, harass would violate the 1st Amendment.
Click to expand...

the catholic church doesn't have a monopoly is child abuse.
it should not matter even if it did
 
X Factor said:
What? Looks like they're looking to regulate the Catholic religion. In the US, singling out a specific religion to, basically, harass would violate the 1st Amendment.
Click to expand...

They're regulating all NGO's with a propensity for child abuse. The Catholic Church has merely been singled out in the report as the worst offender.
 
somebody should allow these priests to marry
 
spud_meister said:
So the Victorian state government recently completed an inquiry into child sex abuse at the hands of non-government organisations. The Catholic church turned out to be the biggest offender:
Cookies must be enabled. | The Australian


The culture of cover-up in the church has lead to widespread offenses, with offenders being hidden from authorities and shuffled out of jurisdictions, with absolutely no concern shown for the welfare of the thousands of victims of Catholic clergy.

The report from the government made 15 recommendations to create or alter legislation to ensure that offenders are more easily caught, and those involved in a cover-up are liable for their actions.
No Cookies | Herald Sun
Click to expand...

Yeah, but we don't often throw priests into prison, so move onto the next crowd. Though I have to wonder where all the blood thirsty people talking about killing sex offenders are when it comes to the Catholic Church.
 
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