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The Catholic Church has had its share of scandals and accusations of abuse, particularly in recent years. In order to stop this, Pope Francis announced changes to try to protect the victims and punish everyone involved.
On Friday, Pope Francis announced important legislative changes to protect children from badual abuse in the Vatican, Vatican City, Rome and around the world. The pope had urged Catholic churches around the world to make adjustments to adequately deal with badual abuse of children by the clergy, reports Reuters.
Previously, cases were handled on an ad hoc basis, depending on the legal provisions in force in the region. But various allegations of abuse in countries such as Ireland, Chile, Australia, Poland, France, and the United States have seriously undermined the credibility and reputation of the Catholic Church. forced to close parishes and pay billions of damages to the victims.
This month alone, Cardinal George Pell was sentenced to six years in prison for abusing boys in Australia. Pell had previously served at the Vatican as treasurer and member of the closest cardinal council of Pope Francis.
There have also been accusations that several high-ranking members of the church have been working to cover up allegations of abuse. Earlier this year, the Archbishop of Lyon, France, was convicted for failing to report abuses to the authorities.
The changes made by Pope Francis will now require superiors and colleagues to report abuse charges and punish those who fail to report and offer appropriate badistance to victims and their families. The law will also require the dismissal of a Vatican official or an employee found guilty of child abuse, will establish new reporting procedures for suspects and will impose tighter controls when hiring. .
These laws will also apply to Vatican diplomatic missions, which have also been the subject of accusations of abuse.
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