MALTA
Vassallo Malta
The Maltese bishop, Charles Scicluna, former prosecutor at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith of clergy who sexually abused minors, was part of the Holy See delegation that appeared before the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child in Geneva on January 16.
In this interview by telephone from Geneva, he spoke about the day-long session with the UN body that attracted so much interest internationally. He says it gave the Holy See an opportunity to respond to the Committee’s concerns regarding child abuse, to reaffirm its commitment to protect children and minors throughout the Catholic Church and all its institutions, and explain how it is doing so.
Q. Could you sum up how the meeting went?
A. It was a very interesting dialogue and the Committee had the opportunity to express its concerns and they are concerns that we share. And so I think it has been a very positive dialogue because the Holy See, as sovereign of Vatican City State and as central organ of government of the Catholic Church around the world, shares the high values of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Committee is very anxious to promote these values and we are on the same page. We had the opportunity, which was I think very important, to express our commitment with the teachings and the guidance of the recent Holy Fathers on the question of the sexual abuse of minors by clergy. And we are also very grateful for the input of the Committee; that input will also help the setting up the working of the Commission for the Protection of Minors announced by the Holy Father at the beginning of December.
Q. The Committee raised many tough questions in today’s session. You were asked: given the ‘zero tolerance’ policy why were there efforts to ‘cover up’ and obscure cases of the abuse of minors by clergy?
A. I think that ‘cover-up’, meaning the obstruction of justice, has to be addressed by the domestic laws of the countries where it happens. It is not the policy of the Holy See. And to the extent that it is a crime in the sovereign territories of the different countries it should be prosecuted, irrespective of whoever is guilty of the crime of the obstruction of justice.
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