Australia Catholic Church's response to sex abuse was 'a complete failure of process', commission is to

By Mark Brolly
Tablet (UK)
December 2, 2015

http://www.thetablet.co.uk/news/2876/0/australia-catholic-church-s-response-to-sex-abuse-was-a-complete-failure-of-process-commission-is-told

Archbishop Denis Hart of Melbourne (pictured) has acknowledged that there was "a paralysis" and "a complete failure of process" in dealing with sexual abuse allegations under one of his predecessors, Archbishop Sir Frank Little.

But he has excused his immediate predecessor, Cardinal George Pell, who governed the Melbourne church from 1996-2001 before his transfer to Sydney.

Archbishop Hart gave evidence over two days to Australia's Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse about the Church's handling of child sexual abuse allegations against six priests, particularly the late Fr Peter Searson, parish priest of Holy Family in Doveton, a working class suburb of Melbourne with a majority immigrant population, in the 1980s and 90s.

Archbishop Little led the Melbourne church from 1974-96 and died in 2008, the year before Fr Searson's death.

Senior Counsel Assisting the Royal Commission, Ms Gail Furness, said in her opening address on 24 November that there had been concerns about Fr Searson's behaviour, his "unnecessary physical and sexualised conduct with children" such as having children sit on his knee in Confession, having them kneel between his knees during Confession and tape-recording "hot" confessions, as well as other concerns about misuse of finances "and generally being rude, unstable and manipulative".

But these were not acted upon until a formal warning in 1993 and his placement on administrative leave in 1997. The following year, his faculties as a priest were removed.

"What is now apparent to me is that there was knowledge and a failure to act," Archbishop Hart said. "I have just been totally appalled by the extent and the depravity of the offenders and the suffering and ruination of lives of the survivors."

Asked by Ms Furness if the dwindling number of priests might have affected Archbishop Little's view of what action he should take against priests, Archbishop Hart replied: "That would have been a factor but not the sole factor. I think Archbishop Little had, as I think has been said elsewhere, a very, very high ideal of the priesthood and he was anxious and he didn't want to have it on his conscience that any action of his would have pushed a fellow out of the priesthood."

During cross examination Ms Furness asked Archbishop Hart: "But he was happy to have it on his conscience that children were abused because he didn't act on those priests?"

"I don't know that that was his intention, but I accept the assertion that you make," he replied.

Ms Furness: "It was undoubtedly the outcome, wasn't it?"

Archbishop Hart: "Yes."

Archbishop Hart referred to the "passivity or inactivity" of his predecessors as Archbishop and Vicars-General, but did not include Cardinal Pell in the criticism.

Ms Furness: "Why would you exclude him?"

Archbishop Hart: "Well, I think as Archbishop he instituted the Melbourne Response (the diocesan protocol for dealing with abuse allegations) and really made big changes."

Ms Furness: "So, he's not responsible, in your view, from any passivity or inactivity; is that right?"

Archbishop Hart: "Not as far as I know."

Later, asked by Ms Furness if he would have expected then Bishop Pell to have known what was happening in Doveton, which was an area under his regional responsibility, Archbishop Hart replied: "I would have expected him to have an adequate degree of knowledge; whether he knew all these awful things, which make me feel ashamed, I'm not sure."

Ms Furness: "But you would expect him, as Auxiliary Bishop with responsibility for this area, to have his hand on the pulse of the parish and to know what was going on in order to tell the Archbishop along the lines that you gave evidence earlier is the role of the Auxiliary Bishop?"

Archbishop Hart: "Certainly, I'd expect that..."

Two of Archbishop Little's senior advisers gave evidence that he refused to move Fr Searson from Doveton.

Bishop Peter Connors, who served as Vicar-General and later an Auxiliary Bishop of Melbourne until installed as Bishop of Ballarat in 1997, said of the way in which the Archdiocese handled Searson over many years: "We responded in a very amateur way and probably left a lot of people hurt."

He said that he "found it just so difficult to get him [Archbishop Little] to act".

In other developments at the Commission Archbishop Hart was asked by Royal Commission Chair Justice Peter McClellan whether if the Church had involved women in its management, the abuse crisis would have been allowed to occur.

"I certainly have a great admiration and respect for what women are doing and are continuing to do," Archbishop Hart replied. "Two of my people involved in response to problems and to challenges are very experienced and discerning women, and that has helped us to respond in an appropriate way which interacts with people and helps them a lot better."