Pope sets new standards to denounce harassment, abuse and concealment

ROME – In a new twist in the fight against the badual abuse of minors in the clergy, a scandal that has hit the credibility of the Church as never before and has meant the worst crisis of his pontificate, the Pope promulgated a decree with new procedures to denounce harbadment and violence and to ensure that bishops and religious superiors are responsible for their actions. The great novelty of this decree is that it obliges all priests and men and women religious to report immediately not only cases of abuse, but also of harbadment and dissimulation which they also know; On the other hand, it forces dioceses around the world to rely on June 2020 with a system that is easily accessible to the public to receive information about abuse. In addition, it establishes quick timelines for the beginning and conclusion of an investigation on a bishop (30 and 90 days, respectively).

The new norms are found in the Apostolic Letter in the form of the Motu Proprio "Your estis lux mundi" (You are the light of the world), released today by the Vatican and signed yesterday by Francisco. The rules and procedures, approved "on a trial basis" by a trieno, will come into effect on June 1st.

"Sexual abuse crimes offend Our Lord, cause physical, psychological and spiritual harm to the victims and harm the community of the faithful." So that these cases, in all their forms, no longer occur continuously and continuously. A profound conversion of hearts, accompanied by concrete and effective actions that involve everyone in the Church ", badures the Pope at the beginning of the Motu Proprio (decree of his will), composed of 19 articles.

Andrea Tornielli, editorial director of the Vatican media, pointed out in an article that the document was "a fruit of more" from the historical
Summit on the protection of minors held last February, to which the pope summoned the presidents of all the bishoprics.

Claims counter

Among the novelties of the decree, Tornielli emphasized the establishment of a "counter" for complaints in each diocese. In fact, all dioceses in the world will now be required to establish, in one year (June 2020), "one or more stable and easily accessible systems for reporting" on badual abuse committed by religious and religious, use of child badgraphy and coverage of the same abuses.

"The regulations do not specify what these" systems "are, in order to give dioceses the most effective option, which may be different depending on the cultures and local conditions, so that people who have been victims of Abuses can resort to the local church with the badurance that they will be welcomed, protected from reprisals and that their reports will be treated with utmost seriousness, "explained Tornielli.

Another novelty is the obligation for all religious, "to inform quickly" the ecclesiastical authority of all cases of abuse of which they are aware, as well as omissions and hiding in the management of cases of abuse "If up to now this obligation concerned, in a sense, only the individual conscience, it would now become a universally established legal precept," he said. , emphasizing that all lay people can and are encouraged to use the system. report abuse and harbadment to the relevant church authority.

The document covers not only harbadment and violence against children and vulnerable adults, but also badual violence and harbadment resulting from an abuse of power. Your estates lux mundi emphasizes the importance of the protection of minors (people under 18) and vulnerable people and the notion of "vulnerable person" is broader, as it is not limited to people "usual use" of the reason, but it is expanded to include cases of occasional and transient disability to understand and want, as well as physical disabilities. In this respect, the new Motu proprio echoes the recent
Vatican law, last March.

Protection of the launchers of alert

Tornielli pointed out that the paragraphs devoted to protecting the people who report are also important. "Those who denounce the abuses, according to the provisions of the Motu proprio, can not be the object of" prejudice, reprisals or discrimination "because of their statements.The problem of victims previously silenced must be solved. universal norms establish that "no obligation of silence on the content" of the report can not be "imposed on them." Clearly, confessional secrecy remains absolute and inviolable and is therefore not affected by this regulation. ", he said. "Your estis lux mundi also claims that the victims and their families must be treated with dignity and respect and receive adequate spiritual, medical and psychological badistance," he added.

The document also reinforces the role of the Metropolitan Archbishop in the previous investigation ordered by the Holy See, if the denounced person is a bishop. "His role, traditional in the Church, is strengthened and testifies to his desire to leverage local resources also for issues related to the investigation of bishops." After thirty days, the investigator sends the Holy See "an information relationship on the state of progress of investigations", which "must be completed within a period of ninety days "(extensions are possible for" just reasons "). This sets certain deadlines and, for the first time, calls on interested services to act promptly, "Tornielli said.

Another important point is that the norms now provide for episcopal conferences and dioceses to prepare lists of qualified people willing to collaborate, although the ultimate responsibility for investigations rests with the Metropolitan Archbishop.

As the pope has always insisted on this point, the document reaffirms the principle of presumption of innocence of the accused, who will be informed of the existence of the investigation at the request of the dicastery competent.

Global phenomenon, universal response

In an interview with
Vatican News On the Motu Proprio, Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, admitted that, of course, the latest wave of cases of abuse and concealment in various parts of the world has prompted the government to take action. development of these new procedures.

"The painful experience experienced in recent years has taught a lot and this motu proprio certainly takes it into account," he said. "I would nevertheless like to stress its universal value: it would be wrong to consider it as an answer to such or such a case, the phenomenon is global and the answer must be universal and, as the pope says, it is concrete", he added. Among the novelties of the decree Ouellet, he stressed the fact that "besides the abuses committed on minors and vulnerable adults, the document also mentions the harbadment or the violence for abuse of authority: this includes in particular in the regulation the cases of religious abuse by clerics or abuse of seminarians or novices by their superiors. "