BishopAccountability.org

Call for immediate action on abuse inquiry

Australian Associated Press, appearing in the Daily Mail
December 10, 2017

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/aap/article-5164901/Call-immediate-action-abuse-inquiry.html

The prime minister and premiers must act now to ensure reforms recommended by the child sexual abuse royal commission are not shelved or lost in politics, a key Catholic Church adviser says.

The church's Truth Justice and Healing Council CEO Francis Sullivan has called on Malcolm Turnbull and state and territory leaders to immediately set up a COAG committee to implement the recommendations in the inquiry's final report, which will be released on Friday.

Mr Sullivan says once the report is in the public domain all participants including the Catholic Church need to implement the recommendations and it is up to Mr Turnbull to lead the way.

"I think he has to show that this report is going to be taken 100 per cent seriously, it's not going to be put in a drawer, it's not going to be just one bit's accepted and another bit's not," Mr Sullivan told AAP.

"I think the governments need to establish that COAG working party immediately on the day, then institutions and others need to step up themselves with their own implementation processes to interface with that.

"We cannot afford for this to get to get lost over the summer, to get shouted down by the political narrative that's going on."

Care Leavers Australasia Network chief executive Leonie Sheedy said all sides of politics must commit to support and implement all of the royal commission's recommendations.

"We cannot let this royal commission sit on a shelf and gather dust," she said.

"Both sides need to commit to protecting children and supporting those who have been abused in the past."

The inquiry has already called for significant reforms across the criminal and civil justice systems, where there has been some progress in setting up a national redress scheme and making it easier for abuse victims to sue for damages.

Mr Sullivan said civil authorities across Australia are not rigorous enough around the protection of children generally, lacking consistent national standards.

"Governments cannot be lax here and can't afford to be complacent because the media focus on the church and other places," he said.

Child protection advocate Bravehearts founder Hetty Johnston said much has been done but the work does not end with the completion of the five-year inquiry.

"All the states and territories should do the right thing by children and adopt these recommendations, which I hope they do.

"I hope if they don't that people stop voting for the governments that don't do it, because the governments that don't implement these recommendations are governments that don't care enough about your children."

Ms Johnston said child-safe practices need to be embedded into the workplace health and safety regime.

"Every organisation, business, institution that interacts with children has a responsibility to be cognisant of the special threat posed to children in that environment."

 




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