THE PUBLICATION date of the Cloyne report remained unclear last
night, with a spokesman for the Department of Justice unable to say when
this was likely.
An expectation that the report, which deals with
the handling of clerical child sexual abuse allegations by church and
State authorities in the Catholic diocese of Cloyne, was to be published
this week ebbed as sources indicated there was disagreement between
counsel as to what should be redacted from the report.
It is
understood there is disagreement as to how the decision by High Court
president Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns last week might be interpreted.
He
ordered that chapter nine of the report be removed prior to publication,
as it deals with a priest currently before the courts.
It is understood that counsel for the accused priest claims he could be identified through other references in the report.
The
report must go to Cabinet prior to publication.
The next scheduled
Cabinet meeting is on today.
However, there is also speculation as to
whether such a report ought to be published in Holy Week, which began Sunday.
It is also know that various victims’ support groups are
concerned about it being published next week as they will be unable to
have personnel available to provide helpline services throughout the
Easter holiday period.
The Cloyne report follows an investigation
by the Murphy commission into the handling of clerical child sexual
abuse cases there from January 1st, 1996, to February 1st, 2009 – and
the introduction of the Irish Catholic Church’s first guidelines on
child protection.
It contains 26 chapters, is approximately 400
pages long, and had included findings on all 19 priests who faced abuse
allegations there over the period investigated.