Vic Govt under Fire over Church Inquiry

By Melissa Jenkins and Melissa Iaria
The Age
April 17, 2012

news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-national/vic-govt-under-fire-over-church-inquiry-20120417-1x4tt.html

The Victorian government has come under fire for ordering a parliamentary inquiry to investigate child sex abuse by the clergy, not a royal commission.

There are concerns a royal commission would have had a better chance of addressing the issue than a six-member committee of inexperienced politicians working part-time.

The inquiry, announced by Premier Ted Baillieu on Tuesday following revelations that at least 40 victims of the Catholic clergy had committed suicide, will be conducted by state parliament's existing Family and Community Development Committee.

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"We regard child abuse as abhorrent and we will endeavour to do whatever we can to prevent it from happening and indeed bring those who are perpetrators of child abuse to justice," Mr Baillieu told reporters.

"The pain of victims has gone on for too long."

One of the inquiry's main lines of investigation will be into the handling of accusations against organisations dealing with children, including the Catholic Church.

Melbourne's Catholic Archbishop Denis Hart has denied the church covered up sexual abuse by its clergy and said the archdiocese had nothing to hide from the inquiry.

Broken Rites volunteer Wayne Chamley said he was disappointed the government had not set up a royal commission to investigate both proven cases and allegations of sexual abuse.

"It's very disappointing that a parliamentary inquiry is not going to have the teeth to get to the bottom of what has been going on for the last 40 years at least," Mr Chamley told reporters.

Attorney-General Robert Clark said a parliamentary inquiry would be less intrusive and legalistic than a royal commission and enable victims to feel more comfortable.

The committee would have the power to compel witnesses to give evidence and produce documents, at risk of being in contempt of parliament.

Four of the six politicians who will conduct the inquiry are first-term MPs.

Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews welcomed the inquiry but said it would be better run by someone not involved in Victorian politics.

Chrissie Foster, whose daughter died of a medication overdose after being abused by a Catholic priest, was happy the government was finally dealing with the issue.

"This is a wonderful day to see the government stepping in to make something happen, that the church will be held accountable for what it's done in the past to children," Ms Foster said.

Her husband Anthony Foster said he hoped several deficiencies with the inquiry's terms of reference would be addressed.

"Another concern with the inquiry that's been announced is whether it will have the real bite to get to all the documents that are necessary," he said.

Lawyer Vivian Waller, who represents 45 victims suing the church, said a royal commission or judicial inquiry would have been better.

Ms Waller said she hoped the archdiocese of Melbourne would be compelled to reveal how many complaints it had received and how they were handled.

Welcoming the inquiry, Archbishop Hart said he was confident it would "clear the air around this painful and distressing issue of sexual abuse in Victoria".

"As I have indicated frequently in the past, the Catholic archdiocese of Melbourne will cooperate fully with the parliamentary inquiry during the course of its investigations," he said in a statement.

Melbourne's Anglican Archbishop Philip Freier said the diocese would also co-operate fully.

The inquiry will examine the policies of religious and other non-government organisations relating to allegations of criminal abuse of children.

It is required to report to parliament by April 30 next year.

Police last week said their report linking the suicides to sexual abuse by Catholic clergymen will be passed on to the Victorian coroner for further investigation.

* Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467.