Culture of Cover-up Should Shame All Involved

By Allison Morris
Irish News
March 3, 2018

http://www.irishnews.com/news/northernirelandnews/2018/03/03/news/analysis-culture-of-cover-up-should-shame-all-involved-1269100/

Fr Malachy Finegan died in 2002 without the allegations of abuse against him being made public

Allison Morris

THE resignation of Bishop of Dromore John McAreavey was swift and unexpected.

In the closed ranks of the Catholic Church it is rare for one man to take responsibility for what was an historical culture of silence when it came to the abuse of children by members of the clergy.

That the horrendous abuse, sexual, physical and emotional, experienced by young boys at the hands of Fr Malachy Finegan went unreported and unchecked for so long should shame all of those involved.

The testimony of victims, who have finally felt able to speak out, has painted a grim picture of what life was like for boys who came in contact with the savage, sadistic thug of a man who used his power as a Catholic priest to brutalise young children.

That a man who was a danger to every child he had contact with was able to remain at a school, not defrocked and stripped of his status as a priest, not reported to police and brought to justice, is an appalling scenario.

That children were not listened to, or were given private financial settlements rather than the opportunity for justice and recognition of the trauma they had endured, is unforgivable.

That there was knowledge of the abuse in the highest echelons of the Catholic Church in the Diocese of Dromore, and yet Finegan remained a priest, was an act of negligence that continued to place children at risk.

That this came to light after the abuse by prolific paedophile Fr Brendan Smyth had already been made public - with the evidence of cover up by the Church that scandal uncovered - makes this case even more shocking.

It meant Finegan died with his status as pillar of the community intact - until just a few months ago pictures of the pervert priest still adorned the walls of St Colman's College, while he was given a high status funeral, gifted with glowing obituaries and had an elaborate headstone placed on his grave.

The Historical Institutional Abuse inquiry into the abuse of vulnerable children who were placed in the care of the Catholic Church found systemic abuse.

However, Sir Anthony Hart's remit did not extend to Catholic schools or the abuse of young boys who served as altar boys or children abused within the community.

The Church no longer wields the power it once did, and when we look back now and reflect on how that power was abused that's no bad thing.

However, the hurt caused by actions from that time cannot be erased or glossed over.

A wide-reaching inquiry is needed to examine not just the abuse, but the culture within churches, schools, colleges and sporting institutions that allowed men like Malachy Finegan to abuse with impunity.