"Hell on Earth"- Catholic child rape crisis in Australia

[D1B]

Australia hit hard by catholic predators. Reported cases just the tip of the iceberg.

It is all but impossible to know just how many victims are out there, but it could be tens of thousands across Australia. Only about 10 per cent of adults who were sexually assaulted as children will ever report to the police. The Melbourne archdiocese reported a year ago that 450 complaints have been lodged. It recently said it had investigated about 330 complaints. ''Either way, if that represents that 10 per cent figure, that's a lot; between 3300 and 4500. That is just the Melbourne archdiocese. The Melbourne archdiocese only deals with diocesan priests. And the Melbourne archdiocese is just one geographical area. How many victims are there across the state? The breadth of the problem is obviously vast.''

The effects of such crimes are profound and cut across the entire community.

In Ballarat alone, as many as 35 men have committed suicide, victims of two priests, Robert Best and Gerald Ridsdale. Courtin's yet-to-be-published research is suggesting other suicide clusters.

''A lot of the families have endured, sadly, the death of a loved one. The impacts on families include depression, grief, loss of faith, guilt; anger, despair, sadness and anguish. One mother said she felt a knife went through her heart when she finally found out about the multiple anal rapes of her 11-year-old son.''

Courtin says the harm for victims includes suicide, attempted suicide, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, alcohol and drug addiction, difficulties with forming relationships, a distrust of authority figures, grief, anger, breakdown of families and a loss of faith.

It is a struggle made all the more frustrating by the church's protection of criminal priests.

Countless documents are being harboured by the church, and a number of convicted paedophile priests are even receiving financial support from the church for rent and health insurance.

A proper judicial inquiry is all the more necessary as a result of inherent impediments to justice. As it is not a legal entity, the Catholic Church cannot be sued. Dioceses and religious orders cannot be sued. The church and school authorities cannot be held vicariously liable. Offenders can be sued but, as sex crimes are often not reported for decades, the offender might be dead and anyway has made a vow of poverty. Only about 6 per cent of child sex matters reported to police result in conviction and more than half of those are appealed.

The Catholic Church is relying on these barriers. The government's inquiry is structurally unable to breach them.

The Catholic Church's leaders have failed to ask one simple question: what would Jesus Christ do? Until they do, and change their position, they invite being seen as sinners and hypocrites.

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There are most likely hundreds of thousands of victims of the catholic church in the US.

[Gil Dobie]

The Catholic Church's leaders have failed to ask one simple question: what would Jesus Christ do? Until they do, and change their position, they invite being seen as sinners and hypocrites.

The person that wrote this doesn't understand the they are not just seen as sinners and hypocrites, they are sinners and hypocrites. Surprised you are giving them the benefit of the doubt.