The Irish Times |
Thursday, July 14, 2011
PAUL CULLEN, PATSY McGARRY and PADDY AGNEW

Bishop Magee in St Colman's Cathedral in the Diocese of Cloyne
THE CLOYNE REPORT ON THE BISHOP AND THE VATICAN: TOUGH NEW laws to force the disclosure of information on child sexual abuse are to be introduced in response to another damning report on the failure of the Catholic Church to protect child abuse victims.
The withholding of information about serious offences against a child will be made a criminal offence, Minister for Justice Alan Shatter announced yesterday following the publication of the report on the handling of sex abuse claims in the diocese of Cloyne.
Further measures, including a statutory child protection code, are to be announced by Minister for Children Frances Fitzgerald tomorrow.
The report found that the Bishop of Cloyne, John Magee, misled the minister for children by claiming the churchâs guidelines for handling abuse cases were being fully complied with. It also found he falsely told the Health Service Executive (HSE) that allegations of abuse were being reported to gardaÃ.
In fact, two-thirds of complaints made between 1996 and 2008 were not reported to the Garda and no complaint was passed to the HSE during this period.
The report accuses the Vatican, through its opposition to the Irish bishopsâ procedures for handling child sexual abuse, of giving comfort to dissenters within the church who did not want to implement them. In a secret letter to the bishops, Rome describes the 1996 rules as âmerely a study documentâ and not official. Continue reading →