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Hollingworth "Washed His Hands" of Complaints

By Jorge Branco
Brisbane Times
November 12, 2015

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/child-abuse-royal-commission-hollingworth-washed-his-hands-of-complaints-20151112-gkx19m.html

[with audio]

Staff at a Brisbane private school were told former governor-general Peter Hollingworth had "washed his hands" of sexual abuse concerns and the school would be dealing with them "in-house", a royal commission has heard.

The meeting took place one or two years after the death of Kevin John Lynch, who killed himself in January 1997 after being charged with sexually abusing a student at the Anglican St Paul's School.

Former teacher Craig Patterson said St Paul's staff had been told Peter Hollingworth had "washed his hands" of abuse fallout. Photo: Child Abuse Royal Commission

Dr Hollingworth was the Archbishop of the Anglican Diocese of Brisbane at the time.

On Thursday, former St Paul's teacher Craig Patterson told the child abuse royal commission rumours surrounding Lynch's abuse of students at the school grew from a "low rumble" to a "torrent" in the years after the counsellor's death.

He said then-headmaster Gilbert Case addressed a full staff meeting about a year or two after Lynch's death about how the school was dealing with the rumours.

Former governor-general Peter Hollingworth. Photo: Andrew Taylor

"Mr Case... announced to the staff that number one because this was circulating, the whole thing about how the Archbishop, Hollingworth, was involved or not involved or what was going on," he said.

"(He) announced literally what I said there (in my statement). He said the Archbishop had washed his hands of the matter and that it was going to be dealt with in-house."

Mr Patterson, who resigned from the school in October 1999, said teachers were then handed a "sexual harassment bullying" policy document, which he had never seen before.

He said he was "stunned" and "aghast" to hear two teachers speaking freely about Lynch's abuse about a month before he resigned.

"My reaction and the reaction of the staff around me basically was, 'I've never seen it. What is that?' " he said.

"And it was handed out and most of the staff sat there and said, 'Yeah, that's a good thing.' "

Mr Case's barrister, Jeffrey Hunter QC, put it to Mr Patterson that his client had never said those words, which the former teacher rejected.

Dr Hollingworth's barrister, Caroline Kirton QC, pointed to a statement from former Chairman of the Board of St Paul's Andrew Knox.

She read Knox's comments referring to "the Diocese assuming control of the Lynch-related complaint, counselling and mediation process with all then known parties who had been abused, almost entirely to the exclusion of the school and the school council".

Mr Patterson accepted that statement stood in "stark contrast" to what he was saying Mr Case said.

Mr Case is expected to spend much of Thursday on the witness stand.

 

 

 

 

 




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