AUSTRALIA
The Australian
Pia Akerman
From:The Australian
October 19, 2012
VICTORIA’S deputy police commissioner has accused the Catholic Church of impeding criminal investigation of child sex offences through its lack of cooperation with police.
In the first day of a parliamentary inquiry into how religious organisations have handled child sexual abuse allegations, Victoria Police deputy commission Graham Ashton resumed his scathing assessment of the church’s internal processes which he said were hampering prosecutions.
“Victoria Police has concerns that existing protocols within religious organisations are focused on church issues such as legal liability and public relations rather than the long term interests of victims,” he told the inquiry before a packed public gallery this morning.
Mr Ashton said the church had repeatedly dismissed allegations of abuse by already dead offenders, which was “an absolute nonsense” and stopped police from knowing the full picture.
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