Catholic Pontiff, Pope Francis,
on Thursday, announced that henceforth, bishops would be accountable for sexual
abuses or cover ups in their jurisdictions.
The pronouncement, which
signalled a change in Catholic Church law, makes reporting of sexual cases
obligatory for clerics and allows anyone to complain directly to the Vatican if
necessary.
The papal decree, which covers
abuse of children and adults, also obliges every Catholic diocese in the world
to set up simple and accessible reporting systems and encourages local churches
to involve lay experts in investigations.
The decree, whose preparation was
reported first by Reuters in April, is the second of such papal provision since
a summit on abuse by senior Church bishops at the Vatican in February.
It sets time limits for local
investigations and the Vatican’s response to them and allows for retroactive
reporting.
It also says bishops with
conflicts of interest should recuse themselves from investigations and that
they can also be held accountable for abuse of power in sexual relations with
adults.
The 19-article decree called “Vos
Estis Lux Mundi” (You Are the Light of the World), raises 16 to 18, the age of
adulthood in cases of sexual abuse.
It also covers possession of
child pornography.
The decree says local Church
officials cannot order those, who report abuse to remain silent and that senior
bishops should make provisions to prevent documents from being destroyed by
subordinates if needed.
It directed that clerics should
follow local law on whether they are obliged to report alleged sexual abuse to
civil authorities.
Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
it is a timely development. God help you.
ReplyDelete