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Bishop of Derry faces cover up allegations

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William Crawley | 08:44 UK time, Thursday, 18 March 2010

hegarty.jpgThe news media may shift their attentions away from the plight of Cardinal Sean Brady today -- if only temporarily -- as we learn more details about the involvement of the Bishop of Derry, Dr Seamus Hegarty, in an to cover up alleged child sexual abuse.

T is reporting that an alleged victim of child sexual abuse was paid 拢12,000 in December 2000 and required to sign a confidentiality agreement.

It is claimed that the victim in this case was subjected to sexual abuse by an unnamed priest over a 10-year period from the age of 8.

According to Ian Elliott, chief executive of the, out of court settlements are "not acceptable". The Diocese of Derry has refused to comment on the allegations until it checks its official records.

The alleged victim's father has told the Belfast Telegraph that her family had not gone to the police at the time because "it was not the culture" in Derry to do so. That appears to be a reference to the unwillingness of many Catholics and nationalists at the time to have any contact with the Royal Ulster Constabulary.

It may be that the diocese, when they have examined their files, will argue that this financial settlement was considered appropriate at the time because the normal route of a police investigation -- and, thus, the criminal courts -- was blocked as a consequence of the controversial nature of policing in Northern Ireland.

If that argument is deployed, it will not satisfy many victims and survivors of abuse, and questions will remain unanswered about the fact that neither the alleged abuser nor the diocese accepted any liability in this civil action in respect of a decade-long spate of abuse.

Instead, we are told, that the closest the priest in question came to an admission of guilt was a handwritten letter, attached to the civil agreement, in which he apologised to the alleged victim's family for "for any pain I caused you through inappropriate gesture or mistaken signs of affection".

When an alleged paedophile who has abused an eight-year-old child describes that molestation as a "mistaken sign of affection", that is clearly a sign that the abuser is still unwilling to fully accept that he is an abuser. Any secrecy mechanism that permits an abuser to disguise the nature or extent of his abuse is extremely dangerous and may leave other children vulnerable to abuse in the future.

These are some of the questions now facing the Bishop of Derry:

1. What were the circumstances of the alleged abuse?
2. How did the church learn of the abuse allegations?
3. What action was taken to deal with the allegations?
4. Who was told about the allegations?
5. Did the alleged abuser, the priest, admit guilt in any meetings with church officials?
6. Who took the decision not to involve the police in the investigation of the complaints?
7. Was any effort made to persuade the family that they should contact the police or become involved in a police-led investigation?
8. Who suggested that this case should be resolved by means of a civil action?
9. How was the compensation figure of 拢12,000 agreed?
10. How many other confidentiality agreements have been signed with alleged victims of abuse?
11. Why was the alleged abuser permitted to avoid any admission of criminal responsibility?
12. What action was taken to remove the alleged abuser from the priesthood?
13. If the alleged abuser was removed from the priesthood, was he then permitted to move into another career in which he had contact with children?
14. Do the alleged abusers' subsequent employers have any knowledge of the abuse allegations he faced in the year 2000?
15. If the alleged abuser subsequently abused another child, would the church have an legal liabilities or moral responsibility in respect of that abuse?

Comments

  • Comment number 1.

    Read on and find out why the Popes Letter of Apology is Hypocrisy?

    The Pope has covered up Abuse 鈥淗imself鈥 and communicated an Edict that Reporting Rape or Torture would result in Excommunication.

    The Pope also introduced a statute of limitation for Rape and Sexual abuse of 10 years after the victim reaches 18 and an Edict that these events where to be Kept secret until that time.

    Source



  • Comment number 2.

    If the Diocese of Derry gets away with 拢12000 for sexually abusing a kid from 8 to 18 then all their colleagues in the US will see read in the face with jealousy, since there you can add 1 or 2 zeroes for a settlement amount. While the claims culture in the US, with its sometimes ludicrously high amounts being awarded (I hope that criticism doesn't set Marcus on another crazy posting spree), isn't something to wish for here, thinking you can buy off 10 years of sexual abuse against a minor for 拢12000 seems outrageous.

  • Comment number 3.

    Will, are we going to go back and list each failure and pretend it's something new that has just been discovered - is that the media strategy? Because this story is old news just as the Sean Brady story was in the Sunday Mirror 13 years ago.

    It's frankly laughable to have someone like Martin McGuinness calling on someone to resign because of something they did three decades ago. What was he doing then? We've had his "regrets" but an apology? Not yet.

  • Comment number 4.

    December 2000 - This century started off on the right foot then.

    Surely the entire population of Ireland bears responsibility for collusion and the appearance of not caring a fig about the children. Is it that since family planning was outlawed and ruthlessly enforced by a militant and cruel religious corporation that caused the over supply and hence fodder for vile abuse?

    The man at the top must go, that is the pope. He's the one that continues protect and promote Cardinal Law from returning to the USA to face indictments for ongoing aiding and abetting of serial child abusers.
    Andrew Brown has at least called for this:

    "A leader who wished to end the crisis would sack Cardinal Bernard Law"


    Vatican-gate may be the wedge that causes the the whole ridiculous institution of Roman Catholicism to collapse. I hope so. The announcement earlier in the week about the tour dates for the pope in the UK coming to lecture the nation on 'morality' is rather hysterical. Hold back on packing the knapsacks with ant-pope protest material and free condoms for the kids since my gut tells me that the Vatican super managers will conveniently arrange for him to die in his sleep. It is pretty easy to get away with knocking off an old geezer that is causing so much scrutiny of the corporation.

    Religions are passed their sell-by dates. None of the tenets are true and.

    Whether in Las Vegas or any Catholic mass, waving a magic wand over a cookie while chanting won't turn it into a god.

  • Comment number 5.

    Aren't words wonderful!

    The phrase "it was not the culture" needs clarification. It could mean that no-one reported any crime at all to the police, or it could mean that no-one challenged the church. I was born in Derry, and lived here in 1979.

    It is simply untrue that no-one engaged with the RUC - it was common for people to report car theft, vandalism and "non-political" events to the police. I can quote one well-documented case to support this.

    The phrase "mistaken sign of affection" used by the alleged abuser are curious. It may be a denial of responsibility, but it is also possible that they were crafted with the intention of avoiding admission of guilt, in case of criminal proceedings later on.

  • Comment number 6.

    1 hour later and still no klaver...

    this is very poor!

  • Comment number 7.

    That's a good point, PK.

    Shame we had to wait an hour to read it!

  • Comment number 8.

    Here's an easy Q for some of you
    Modern humans have been in Europe for at least 45,ooo years and we have only heard of Christianity in the last 2,000 years!
    Surely God would have wanted us to have known of him much earlier?

  • Comment number 9.

    And here's an easy A for consideration... try not to worry about those 43,000 years, or use them as an excuse not to pursue knowledge of him as we know it through Christianity, today. Too easy?

  • Comment number 10.

    Christopher, I saw that re-issued Sunday Mirror story. But read through it: there's no mention there of a vow of secrecy/confidentiality. That's new information. And it is the vow of secrecy that has so shocked and outraged many of the people contacting us this week.

  • Comment number 11.

    Not an answer at all - your thinking is downsideup!
    You do accept my premise that Europeans had no knowlege of your 'God' for 96% of their time and they invented other gods?
    Why did your God not make himself know to them?
    You must have an answer - explain it to me
    My simple and logical answer is that there are no gods and we invented them.
    I presume you consider the gods of other religions are inventions?
    How can there be a proper moralty with concern for all humans when you believe in a nonsense?

  • Comment number 12.

    allybalder, what was invented regarding Jesus Christ?

  • Comment number 13.

    Read my questions again!

  • Comment number 14.

    I'd take those set of questions, adjust them slightly and address them to the girls father. She announces the complaint the day she turns 18. And accepts 12K for years of abuse. She and father don't go to police and he's happy the guy is moved to Donegal. Who was at fault here? More the father than the bishop.

  • Comment number 15.

    allybalder, I went straight to your 'simple and logical answer', 'that there are no gods and we invented them', and wondered what you considered invented about Jesus Christ? That's all.

    What's more, even if God makes himself fully known to people (as Christians claim) it still doesn't stop people inventing other gods, as you prove yourself.

  • Comment number 16.

    The parents of abused children were threatened with excommunication (eternal life in Hell) if they spoke to anyone about the abuse.

    Its risible for MCC to now be attempting to pin it on them. Isnt this the same blogger who on numerous occasions has demanded absolute assent and obedience to his Church of Rome and anyone who doesnt obey is to "get out" of the Church?

    By his own warped reasoning, any parent who had broken the vow of silence imposed on them and gone to the police, he would have labelled them, "dissidents" and accused them of being unfaithful to the Church. Pathetic.

  • Comment number 17.

    The Apostle Paul warned of this: "But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves... lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts..." (2 Tim. 3:1-6)

    Historically, false teachers have (amongst other vices) been prone to sexual immorality, preying not only on vulnerable women, but also vulnerable children.

  • Comment number 18.

    OK downsideup
    One question at a time
    I know it may be difficult
    Do you consider that Gods other than the Christian one are inventions?

  • Comment number 19.


    upsidedownworld

    I wasn't going to say this, but I will. I too am a Christian, but please consider your answers to allybalder very carefully. They are not unreasonable questions, and, to be honest, simply suggesting that he might be making excuses or wondering (incredulously) why people might think that Jesus is made up, no longer cuts any ice.

    People may not like our answers, and they may not agree with our answers, but we should have some kind of an answer.

  • Comment number 20.

    The alleged abuser in this case, it now appears, was not moved around like just any old pedo. He was given a key role in the pastoral training of new priests.

  • Comment number 21.

    Thank you Peter - I really do appreciate the direction you point me in.

    However, the questions asked were obviously leading to the 'simple and logical answer', 'that there are no gods and we invented them' - and nothing one would say would likely deflect from that. I was simply wondering, on this basis, how allybalder applied his simple and logical answer to the Christian belief that Jesus is God - what allybalder considered 'invented' about Jesus of Nazareth.

  • Comment number 22.


    Quoting upsidedownworld
    However, the questions asked were obviously leading to the 'simple and logical answer', that there are no gods and we invented them'

    You've let the cat out of the bag there all right!!
    If it's simple and logical then why not accept it as true?

  • Comment number 23.

    I know the gods exist. They hate me.

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