SOUTH AFRICA
The New Age
Chris Makhaye
There are mixed feelings on the streets about Durban-based Roman Catholic priest Cardinal Wilfrid Napier’s comment that paedophilia was “an illness and not a criminal act”.
Most of those interviewed differed with Napier and said paedophiles should be tried in a court of law and if convicted, imprisoned.
Ramesh Mahabeer, a Durban businessman, said priests who were found to have committed the crime should be sentenced to long jail terms.
“We rely on priests for spiritual healing. We also rely on them to do God’s work. If they go out and rape and abuse young boys they are committing an unspeakable crime. They should be sent to jail for a long time like common criminals because they are abusing the trust that is placed in them. The community regard them as God’s own representatives,” Mahabeer said.
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