Archbishop Seeks Reporting of Child Abuse, Sexual Assault
By Haidee V Eugenio
Archbishop Michael Jude Byrnes has asked Catholics to join the rest of Guam in observing child abuse prevention month, to help bring hope and healing to victims, including those who are sexual assault survivors. “Please do not cast a blind eye or a deaf ear to something that you see or hear,” Byrnes said in an April 16 pastoral letter. “Take advantage of the social and legal remedies available to us. And if you know someone who is suffering silently with the shame of having been abused as a minor by a member of the clergy, please give them the number to the Hope and Healing hotline: 1-888-649-5288.” Byrnes, in his Easter Sunday message, said he is mindful of the many victims of sexual assault and child abuse on island, particularly the victims of child sexual abuse perpetrated by members of the Catholic clergy. The Archdiocese of Agana faces 54 clergy sex abuse lawsuits filed in local and federal courts as of April 19, including allegations against Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron, who is also undergoing a Vatican canonical penal trial. Byrnes said, aside from the cases reported in the media, he knows from personal encounters that there are many who continue to suffer in silence and shame. He said it is appropriate that people acknowledge the darkness, so that they might more readily embrace the light. “The strong taking advantage of the weak is a phenomenon as old as Cain and Abel. It is ugly. It destroys innocence for the sake of selfish desire. And we are all susceptible to one degree or another. Some sins, however, seem unthinkable; but, alas, they are not,” Byrnes said. The archdiocese initiated Hope and Healing Guam as a program to offer professional counseling, treatment, spiritual healing, compensation, and justice to clergy abuse victims. It presents an alternative to court litigation. Under Byrnes’ leadership, the archdiocese has also voluntarily adhered to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ revised “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.” This includes required automatic reporting to civil authorities of any allegation of clergy sex abuse involving minors, legal background checks, and, permanent removal from ministry if the sexual abuse allegations are substantiated. Guam is observing child abuse prevention month in April, in order to help transform the community into a place that actively supports children and families. A total of 2,147 referrals involving 3,336 children who were suspected of being abused or neglected were received by the Guam Child Protective Services in fiscal 2016 alone, according to the Department of Public Health and Social Services. Contact: heugenio@guampdn.com
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