VATICAN CITY
Vatican Insider
Bishop Tomasi said it seems as though the report was prepared before the Holy See’s discussions with the Committee on the Rights of the Child, adding that the Committee may have been influenced by pro-homosexuality NGOs
ANDREA TORNIELLI
VATICAN CITY
“The initial reaction was one of surprise.” It seems as though the report was prepared before the meeting with the Holy See delegation which gave detailed answers on a number of points.” The Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN in Geneva, Bishop Silvano Tomasi did not hide his dismay at the concluding report published today by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. The report claims that the Holy See is continuing to violate the rights of children.
Vatican Radio interviewed Tomasi.
“There is a need to read and analyze the recommendations proposed by the committee calmly and in detail, “Tomasi said. “But our initial reaction is one of surprise because the negative tone of the document produced makes it seem as though it was prepared before the Committee’s meeting with the Holy See delegation, during which clear responses were given on a number of aspects. There was no mention of these in the concluding document or at least they don’t appear to have been taken into consideration.”
The Vatican diplomat went on to say that “it seems as though” the document “has not been updated according to what the Holy See has done in the past years, with measures introduced directly by the Vatican City State and then by the Episcopal Conferences of the various different nations.” The document therefore “does not offer a correct or up-to-date picture of the situation, as a number of changes have been made to ensure the protection of children; it seems to me that changes of this kind are difficult to find in other institutions and State. These are simply the facts, it is evidence which cannot be distorted.”
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