BishopAccountability.org
Deetman Commission Report

Deetman Commission Report Via Bishopaccountability.org
December 26, 2011

http://bishopaccountability.org/reports/2011_12_16_Deetman_Seksueel_Misbruik/Deetman_Report_English_Summary.pdf

[excerpt]

Within the Roman Catholic Church, attention initially focussed on sexual abuse within relationships of dependency. Bishops who were confronted with sexual violence in domestic situations, and particularly incest, in the course of their pastoral work drew attention to these problems. In the early 1990s instructions were drawn up for providing pastoral care in these situations.

In 1995 the Roman Catholic Church established Help & Justice and drew up a procedure laying down how this organisation should handle complaints of sexual abuse. There was also discussion of how to deal with the 'problem of the priests who do not request or want a dispensation even though they are known to be homosexuals or paedophiles'. It emerged that Rome had issued an instruction that allowed for 'ex officio laicisation' (removal from office as a priest) in such cases. The consequences under criminal law were reviewed. For example, in 1998 a memorandum was drafted addressing the question of whether the Church was obliged to make a complaint [to the police] about sexual abuse by a priest or a

brother, even if it was not rape.

In 2001 the Vatican acknowledged the existence of sexual abuse of minors in the Roman Catholic Church for the first time. During the World Youth Days in July 2002, Pope John Paul II called on the young faithful not to be deterred by the faults of some

within the Church.


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