AUSTRALIA
The Guardian

Anna Pha

The terms of reference and selection of Commissioners for the Royal Commission (RC) into institutional responses to allegations and incidents of child sexual abuse have been widely welcomed. The terms of reference reflect the sensitive nature of the issues and the difficulties many will have in recounting their experiences. They also give the RC considerable flexibility in how it conducts the inquiry.

For years calls by victims’ support and advocacy groups for a national inquiry have fallen on deaf ears as the cover-ups and atrocities continued. No government had the courage to stand up to the powerful church forces that stood in the way of justice. But the pain did not go away; the wounds could not even begin to heal without acknowledgement and justice. Lives continued to be destroyed. At last there is hope that their voices will be heard and appropriate action…