AUSTRALIA
ABC News
[with video]
Federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has embraced the Victorian Government’s parliamentary inquiry into clergy abuse, but has warned against singling out the Catholic Church.
Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu yesterday announced an inquiry would be held after a police report uncovered dozens of suicides linked to child abuse by Catholic clergy.
Mr Abbott says child abuse is “a terrible blot on society” that has to be eliminated but the blame should not be solely directed at the church.
“There has been a lot of pretty gruesome behaviour in many institutions over the years and we should be careful not to single out particular institutions, given that a lot of this has been or it was pandemic a generation ago,” he said.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.