AUSTRALIA
The Age
January 18, 2013
Richard Willingham
State Political Correspondent for The Age
Victims of abuse who have already given evidence to the Victorian parliamentary inquiry into the handling of child abuse by religious and other organisations may be saved the pain of having to go through new hearings for the royal commission.
There has been some concern that abuse survivors may have to give their evidence again, to the royal commission, which could cause unnecessary trauma.
The terms of reference released last week say that commissioners are not required ”to inquire, or to continue to inquire, into a particular matter to the extent that you are satisfied that the matter has been, is being, or will be, sufficiently and appropriately dealt with by another inquiry or investigation or a criminal or civil proceeding”.
On Wednesday, the chairman of the royal commission, Justice Peter McClellan, said: ”The commission is mindful of the work which has been done in various parts of Australia and will seek to draw upon the material which has already been gathered by those inquiries.”
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