The Anglican Church has “Failed to protect” victims of pedophile priests, concluded on Tuesday, October 6, an independent British investigation denouncing a ” culture “ within the institution allowing perpetrators of sexual abuse of minors to ” to hide “.
“Deference to the authority of the Church and priests, taboos surrounding sexuality and an environment in which the alleged perpetrators were more supported than the victims were obstacles to revelation. [des agressions] that many victims could not overcome ”, details the Independent Commission of Inquiry into Sexual Assault against Minors (IICSA), set up in 2015 following accusations, then denied, of an alleged pedophile ring at the highest level of power.
The two highest dignitaries of the Church of England, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, spiritual leader of the Anglicans, and the number 2 of the Church, the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, had taken the lead and apologized to the victims even before the report was released.
” There is still a lot to do “
The Church of England has over a million regular believers. A total of 390 church-related people were convicted of sexual offenses from the 1940s to 2018, the report says. In 2018, 449 reports were issued about recent sexual abuse of children, more than half of which concerned priests or religious.
Yes “A lot has improved in terms of governance, training, auditing, personnel, policies and procedures, […] There is still a lot to do “, notes the commission of inquiry. It recommends in particular the creation of a function of diocesan officer with the power to take decisions in matters of victim protection independently of the diocesan bishop.
The Church of England should also reintroduce the rule to expel any member of the clergy convicted of minor sexual offenses, provide more support to victims and share information it has with other churches, the commission said.
A “shocking” reading of the report
Prior to the publication of this report, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, spiritual leader of the Anglicans, and Church number 2 Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, said in an open letter to each other, “Very sorry for the shameful way in which the Church has acted”. “We are committed to listening, learning and acting in response to the findings of the report”, they wrote. The two men of the Church presented their “Sincere apologies, from the bottom of my heart, to those who have been abused, as well as to their families, friends and colleagues”.
In a statement released after the report was released, the Church of England said “Study the recommendations” and promised a “Full response in the coming weeks”. “Reading the report is shocking and while an apology will never remove the consequences of the abuse for victims and survivors, today we want to express our shame at the events that made this apology necessary. The whole Church must learn the lessons of this investigation ”, write the leaders of the Church in matters of victim protection.
