Payout Refusal Sparks Backlash

By Dan Box
The Australian
March 26, 2015

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/subscribe/news/1/index.html?sourceCode=TAWEB_WRE170_a&mode=premium&dest=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/in-depth/payout-refusal-sparks-backlash/story-fngburq5-1227278721025&memtype=anonymous

A victim of child sexual assault by a Catholic brother has said the federal government “would prefer us to suffer in silence” after it critic­ised plans for a compensation scheme for the victims of such crimes.

The government also declined an invitation to appear at a public hearing of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse to discuss the issue yesterday.

Commission chairman Peter McClellan said commissioners were “disappointed” the government had not backed the scheme, which was “overwhelmingly supported” by victims and many institutions, including the Catholic, Anglican and Uniting churches.

The proposals involve establishing an independent national body with powers to order instit­utions to formally apologise, pay compensation to and help with the medical costs of an estimated 65,000 victims, at a cost of about $4.3 billion.