SEX abuse survivor group One in Four has called for Pope Benedict XVI to intervene in Ireland’s latest clerical scandal by "sacking some of the priests involved". Speaking after Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin said bishops who failed to protect children had not yet responded adequately to the crisis, One in Four executive director Maeve Lewis said it was time the Vatican supported "courageous" clergymen.
In a strong rebuke of the response from the Church to date, Ms Lewis said it appeared "some of the bishops involved do not understand they facilitated sex offenders to abuse children".
She added that, as Dr Martin has no formal power to remove those responsible, it was time for the Pope to become involved and for the Irish Government to request a meeting with the Papal Nuncio to discuss what action can be taken.
"I wrote to Micheál Martin on Monday about this and told him he should be looking for a meeting with the Papal Nuncio on behalf of the thousands of survivors of clerical child abuse."
Meanwhile, Dr Martin said senior clergy could be "hunted or pushed" out, if they refuse to break their silence.
"I’ve listened to or heard some of the responses. Some of them have made no response, and some of the responses I’ve heard I’m not satisfied with," the archbishop, who has written to those involved asking them to give a clear public explanation for how the abuse was allowed to occur, told RTÉ’s Prime Time programme.
"The people of the archdiocese of Dublin in which this abuse took place have a right to have these questions addressed today from those who bore responsibility at that time. I can’t ask my priests to stand up in front of the congregation on Sunday unless they have answers they genuinely feel they can stand over. It is unjustifiable."
However, speaking from Ottawa in Canada, Fr Tom Doyle, canon lawyer and consultant on the Murphy Report, warned resignations needed to take place if anything is to change.
"What I think they should be forced to do, not just encouraged, is stand up before the people, admit what happened and apologise. Not just for the harm that was done but for what I did. And then resign. They have been complicit in the commission of felony crimes that have devastated human beings. In secular society men who have done the same thing would be prosecuted and probably imprisoned," he said.
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