Vatican denies claims of abuse cover-up in Ireland

The Guardian ^ | Sept 3rd 2011 | Tom Kington

[Cardhu]

Officials issue rebuttal of report priests were told to keep quiet about abuse and hits back at criticism by Irish PM

The Vatican has issued a tough rebuttal of a report claiming it told priests in Ireland to keep quiet about sexual abuse and described criticism by the Irish prime minister, Enda Kenny, as "unfounded".

The Vatican sought to dismantle, point by point, claims made by the report, ordered by the Irish government and released in July, which prompted Kenny to condemn the Vatican as riddled with "dysfunction, disconnection and elitism".

In the ensuing row, the Vatican took the highly unusual decision to recall its ambassador from staunchly Catholic Ireland, with one spokesman in Rome describing its "surprise and disappointment".

The groundbreaking report into abuse in the diocese of Cloyne highlighted a 1997 Vatican letter which expressed "serious reservations" about a policy drawn up the year before by Irish bishops requiring abusers to be reported to the police.

It found the diocese then failed to report nine out of 15 complaints made against priests between 1996 and 2005 which "very clearly should have been reported".

The findings encouraged Irish politicians, led by Kenny, to claim the Vatican's letter had effectively crippled the Irish church's efforts to tackle the abuse within its ranks.

Breaking with years of traditional subservience to the Vatican by Irish politicians, Kenny said: "The rape and torture of children were downplayed or 'managed' to uphold, instead, the primacy of the institution, its power, standing and 'reputation'."

The Vatican's response listed the reasons why the diocese's poor track record on abuse could not be blamed on the 1997 letter by the then Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Luciano Storero.

While the response conceded that the Vatican viewed the bishops' guidelines on police reporting as mere "study document" and not binding,

[Cardhu]

Maeve Lewis, the Irish director for the anti-child abuse campaign group One in Four, said the response was a let-down.

"Once again the Vatican has failed to take responsibility for a culture which prevails in the Catholic church which facilitates the sexual abuse of children," she said.

[GeronL]

The Irish left will do this while nominating a pro-pedophile candidate for President? Why does anyone take them seriously?

[GeronL]

Sorry, the pro-pedophilia David Norris dropped out.

After former favorite Senator David Norris, also an independent, was forced to withdraw because of his support in an Israeli court for his former gay boyfriend who was convicted of statutory rape against a 15-year-old boy 15 years ago, the presidential race has descended into near-farce despite the special elevation it was given by former current President Mary McAleese and her predecessor Mary Robinson.

[vladimir998]

The Church in Ireland is responsible for the Church in Ireland. Balming the Vatican is nonsensical.

[AnAmericanMother]

Ridiculous. The Irish bishops have been completely ignoring the Vatican for years on all sorts of things . . . liturgy, music, administration, etc.

Now all of a sudden it's Rome's fault?