AUSTRALIA
NEWS.com.au
SEXUAL abuse victims and their supporters burst into tears and applause as they welcomed a State Parliament report calling for sweeping new laws to protect children.
Some said the recommendations, including for new offences related to grooming and cover-ups, offered a “glimmer of hope” that children would be better protected.
Others called for a fresh look at compensation paid by churches to victims.
Chrissie Foster, two of whose three daughters were raped by a Catholic priest, Kevin O’Donnell, while they were in primary school, said the release of the report was a happy occasion.
One daughter, Emma, committed suicide in 2008.
Emma’s sister, Katie, became a heavy drinker and was left disabled when hit by a drunk driver in 1999.
Despite the family’s tragedies, Ms Foster said the release of the report of the parliamentary inquiry was a happy occasion for victims.
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