AUSTRALIA
ABC – PM
MARK COLVIN: The Catholic bishop of Wollongong Peter Ingham has appeared before the child abuse royal commission and expressed his frustration with the Vatican at the spent years trying to stop a priest from working in the community, especially with children.
Bishop Ingham said despite Father John Nestor’s eventual acquittal on charges of indecent assault, his past behaviour represented an unacceptable risk and he should not be allowed to work in public ministry.
He also echoed the views of his predecessor who said he would have to resign if John Nestor was allowed to continue to work as a priest.
Emily Bourke has the story.
EMILY BOURKE: The royal commission is continuing to shine a light on internal processes of the Catholic Church, and in particular it’s forced the door open on how the Church investigates and establishes the facts around child sexual abuse allegations brought against priests or religious.
Today, a leading canon lawyer, Kevin Matthews, revealed some serious shortcomings.
Under questioning by Justice Peter McClellan and counsel assisting Angus Stewart, Dr Matthews admitted that cases against priests are frequently tossed out because they can’t be proved through the canon law process.
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