THE FINDINGS OF the Cloyne report, published today, “could not be
starker or more disturbing”, according to the Minister for Justice Alan
Shatter.
The long-awaited Cloyne Report has been published this
afternoon, detailing how the Catholic Church and the state authorities
dealt will allegations of abuse in the Co Cork diocese between the years
1996 to early 2000.
Shatter said that a “private agenda of
concealment” was undertaken by some church figures that had flouted
their requirement to comply with child protection guidelines.
The report
was, in particular, highly critical of the response of former bishop
John Magee in relation to allegations of child sexual abuse in the
diocese.
Monsignor Denis O’Callaghan, who assisted Bishop Magee,
was similarly criticised.
The report also strongly condemned of
the Vatican’s response to child abuse allegations in Cloyne, saying that
it had been “entirely unhelpful”.
The Vatican had actively supported
those who flouted the guidelines by describing the child protection
guidelines as a mere “study document”, it concluded.
The inquiry
was ordered in 2009 by Judge Yvonne Murphy after concerns were raised
about child protection practices in the diocese.
Shatter said that, among the findings of the report, the church authorities in Cloyne had failed to:
- Report cases of abuse to the civil authorities as required
- Put a system of support for victims in place
- Appoint an independent advisory panel
- Properly record cases of sex abuse
The report’s main points:
- The “greatest failure” of the diocese was the failure to report cases of abuse to the civil authorities: the diocese failed to alert the gardaí about nine out of 15 cases that “very clearly” should have been reported
- The primary responsibility for the failure of the child sexual abuse procedures being adhered to lies with the bishop of Cloyne at the time – John Magee – who “took little or no active interest” in implementing procedures until 2008 (12 years after the guidlines had been agreed upon)
- The Vatican was “entirely unhelpful” in assisting clerics wishing to implement procedures – describing the guidelines as “a study document”
- While the response of the health authorities was “adequate”, the state is in need of stronger guidelines regarding child protection
- Although the report is generally complimentary about the gardaí’s response, the handling of three cases have caused concern
Describing
the revelations of the report as “truly scandalous”, Shatter said that
“words are not enough nor is condemnation sufficient”.
As such, he said,
the government was putting the motions in place to make it a criminal
offence to withhold information relating to the sexual abuse of children
or vulnerable adults from the civil authorities; such an offence would
carry the threat of five years in jail under new legislation, he said.
Promising
that there will be “no legal grey area that inhibit such prosecutions”,
Shatter said that the bill’s preparation would be a priority and
that he hoped the legislation would be enacted by the autumn.
Shatter
said that the Assistant Garda Commissioner Derek Byrne was
investigating whether any additional action could be taken against
clerics who were accused of abuse.
Although the response of the
gardaí was “generally adequate and appropriate,” the Commission was
concerned about the approach adopted by some gardaí in a small number of
cases, Shatter added.
Report welcomed
The Archbishop of
Cashel and Emly Dermot Clifford, has said he accepts the findings of the
report and has “humbly” apologised” on his own behalf as Administrator
of the Diocese, and on behalf of its clergy, “to all who suffered and
their families.”
He said: “I am appalled by the depth of damage
and suffering caused by a minority of clergy in the diocese, as outlined
in this report. Great pain was also caused to the families of those
abused, whose strong relationship with the Catholic Church was, in a
number of cases, damaged or destroyed.”
“It appalls me that, up to
2008, 13 years after these procedures were put in place, they were
still not being implemented in the Diocese of Cloyne. This means that
the Church authorities in Cloyne failed some of those who were abused by
not adhering to their commitments when dealing with complaints,” he
continued.
“I note that in their statements issued today both the
now retired Bishop John Magee and Mgr Denis O’Callaghan have accepted
full responsibility and apologised for their failures in the
implementation of the Church procedures, as outlined in the Report,” he
added.
Cardinal Sean Brady has also welcomed the report, saying “I
apologise and express my shame and sorrow at what has happened… The
findings of this report confirm that grave errors of judgement were made
and serious failures of leadership occurred. This is deplorable and
totally unacceptable.”
The Garda Commissioner, Martin Callinan,
acknowledged the considerable investigative work carried out by the
Commission of Investigation and said that the report “details another
difficult and sorry chapter in the story of how both church and state
authorities inIreland responded to the sexual abuse of young people in
our community.”
Callinan added: “While the Commission found that a
number of complainants were highly complimentary about the way in which
the Gardaí dealt with their complaints and that most of the gardaí who
were involved in investigating the complaints outlined in the report
carried out their tasks well and did so while treating the complainants
with compassion and dignity, it did state that it was very concerned
about the approach adopted by the gardaí in three cases.”
“It is a
matter of regret to me that people did not receive the appropriate
attention and action from the Garda Síochána to which they were
entitled. The policies and structures now in place are very much
victim-focused and designed to ensure that no one has a similar
experience today.”
A culture of “astonishing non-compliance”
At
the launch of the report, the Minister for Children Frances Fitzgerald
expressed “sincere sympathy with those who have suffered”; offered an
apology “for the failings of the state”; and condemned the response of
the Cloyne diocese for displaying a culture of
“astonishing non-compliance”.
Fitzgerald also criticised the
Vatican’s response to the crisis, saying that that it was evident its
“sole concern was the protection of the institution – not the children”.
“The
days of voluntarily compliance are over when it comes to child
protection,” Fitzgerald said, adding that, on Friday, the
new guidance document – Children First – would be published and would
lay down “a robust child protection plan for the state”.
FitzGerald
said that the Children First document will insist upon a consistent
inter-agency approach to child protection, and will also propose to
extend the remit of HIQA.
A helpline has been set up in the Cloyne diocese: (freephone) 1800-742800