Plan B Forum

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has announced a Royal Commission to investigate decades of child abuse in churches, schools and foster homes.

Ms Gillard said the commission would address "institutional responses to child abuse" - the instances of abuse as well as the manner in which they have been dealt - by a range of institutions.

She said she would work in coming weeks with Attorney General Nicola Roxon to define the terms of reference, but said she imagined the investigation would go back decades.

The announcement follows calls by the Greens and some Labor backbenchers for a Royal Commission into abuse in the Catholic Church, after it was alleged by a senior policeman that investigations were hindered and in some cases compromised by church officials.

But Ms Gillard said the inquiry would not be limited to the Catholic Church but would include churches, schools, foster homes, state services, police forces, and the not-for-profit sector.

"The allegations that have come to light recently about child sexual abuse have been heartbreaking," Ms Gillard said.

"These are insidious, evil acts to which no child should be subject. The individuals concerned deserve the most thorough of investigations into the wrongs that have been committed against them.

"They deserve to have their voices heard and their claims investigated. I believe a Royal Commission is the best way to do this."

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott had earlier given his backing to a Royal Commission, provided it was not limited to the Catholic Church.

"Any investigation must be wide-ranging, must consider any evidence of the abuse of children in Australia, and should not be limited to examination of any one institution. It must include all organisations, government and non-government, where there is evidence of sexual abuse."

Ms Gillard said terms of reference and a proposed commissioner would be submitted soon to Governor-General Quentin Bryce, who has the power to establish the commission.

She said she had the backing of her Cabinet. She will speak in coming days to state premiers about co-ordinating with any existing inquiries.
"Discussions will also take place with victims’ groups, religious leaders, and community organisations."



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THE Australian Catholic Church holds thousands of pages of documents containing the psychosexual profiles of dozens of clergy accused of sexually abusing children and vulnerable adults.

The profiles, often sent to bishops, were created as part of the church's little-known 1997-2008 rehabilitation program for those it described as ''sexual boundary violators''.


It is understood none of the clergy treated under the multi-million-dollar Encompass Australasia program run from Wesley Private Hospital in Sydney was referred to police for investigation.

Advertisement This was despite senior church figures being aware of serious allegations - or, in some cases, admissions - that led to clergy being sent for treatment.

A NSW Police spokeswoman said that although police had received some abuse information from the church, no record of any referral from the Encompass program could be found.

Victoria Police deputy commissioner Graeme Ashton last month told a Victorian parliamentary inquiry that church leaders in Melbourne had not reported any abuse cases to police.

Sources familiar with the Encompass Australasia program told Fairfax Media that offending clergy were quietly ''transitioned'' out of the church, receiving generous payouts, accommodation and university education.

''There were some outrageous situations that would have been very embarrassing for the church had they become public," a source said. "Deals were cut. The whole operation was extremely confidential."

NSW District Court documents show that a former Marist Brother, Ross Murrin, who in 2002 admitted to church leaders that in the 1970s he had sexually abused eight primary schoolboys was sent to Encompass Australasia for six months' treatment. The court heard that many of the victims turned to drugs and alcohol. One died of a drug overdose. After admitting the abuse Murrin was removed from teaching and sent to Rome to work for the church as a translator.

Police did not learn of his crimes until mid-2007. The brother was charged soon after and returned to Australia where he pleaded guilty and received an 18-month jail term.

In another case, a Sydney priest treated by Encompass after he allegedly made a young woman from an ethnic community pregnant was paid to leave the church quietly. His accommodation and tertiary study were fully funded.

The woman and her child were sent back to her home country.



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dgs49 wrote:... what, exactly, is to be gained by this exercise? Turn over a few more stones? Discover more instances that cannot be prosecuted due to statutes of limitations?

Phillip Coorey
Sydney Morning Herald chief political correspondent

ALMOST every Australian voter backs Julia Gillard's decision to establish a royal commission into the sexual abuse of children but this overwhelming support has not translated into an immediate boost for the government.

The latest Herald/Nielsen poll shows a record 95 per cent of voters support the royal commission, while only 3 per cent are opposed. The Nielsen poll director, John Stirton, said he could not recall a poll issue receiving such universal support.

The poll of 1400 voters was taken from Thursday night to Saturday night. Ms Gillard announced the royal commission last Monday after fresh allegations of abuse in the Catholic Church in NSW.


The royal commission, which will inquire into all institutions, not only churches, has the support of all political parties, state and federal, but some senior members of the federal Coalition are saying privately that the government announced it to try to wedge the Coalition because Mr Abbott is a staunch Catholic.

dgs49 wrote:So the "overwhelming support" by the Oz public for the program (how could anyone oppose it?) has not translated into an immediate boost for the government.

Was this started to gain some political advantage? Shocking. But the public, one might infer, has seen right through it. Jolly good.

THOUSANDS of child sexual abuse victims have been offered the prospect of financial compensation for their treatment at the hands of churches, schools and other institutions.

The royal commission into child sexual abuse will be asked to report on what institutions and governments should do to address the past and future abuse of children. This could include forcing institutions to offer redress, having crimes referred for prosecution, and offering support services. Announcing the terms of reference, the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, said Australia must never again avert its eyes from the ''evil and horrible'' spectre of child sexual abuse.


''Any child being subject to child sexual abuse is an evil and horrible event,'' Ms Gillard said.

''What I think is so confronting about much of what is in the public domain now is the sense that there were systemic issues, and that there were eyes averted and children left in harm's way when changes could have been made and issues of abuse addressed. We've got to learn from that, so we do better in the future.'' She said the commission would focus solely on the sexual abuse of children within organisations and institutions, including police, schools, sporting clubs, orphanages, foster care, and religious organisations.


''It will not deal with child sexual abuse in the family [and] it will also not deal with abuse of children which is not associated with child sexual abuse,'' she said. The commission will report on ways that children in institutions can be better protected and identify the impediments that prevent children reporting abuse. A former president of the Australian Law Reform Commission, David Weisbrot, said the bill for the inquiry would probably exceed the $100 million cost of the Victorian royal commission into the 2009 bushfires.

The commission will be led by Justice Peter McClellan, the Chief Judge at Common Law of the NSW Supreme Court. The other commissioners are the former Queensland police commissioner Bob Atkinson; Justice Jennifer Coate; Robert Fitzgerald, of the Productivity Commission; Professor Helen Milroy, and the former West Australian senator Andrew Murray. The commissioners will meet for the first time on Wednesday. They will be appointed for three years and provide an interim report within 18 months. The terms of reference give the commission an end date of December 31, 2015, but Ms Gillard said that could be extended.

When Parliament resumes next month the government will introduce legislation to allow the commissioners to hear cases individually, rather than in concert.

The only other country to have held such a wide-ranging inquiry into institutionalised abuse was Ireland. Ms Gillard announced the commission in November after scores of reports of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church and allegations of institutionalised cover-ups. The government came under pressure to broaden it beyond the Catholic Church. The Attorney-General, Nicola Roxon, said the inquiry would have ''far-reaching powers'' that could allow it to override confidentiality agreements made in settlements with victims, or to issue immunity from prosecution. But the public needed to moderate expectations.

''This royal commission is not a police force; it is not a prosecuting body.'' She said if anyone had an allegation about child sexual abuse, they should take it to the police. And while the inquiry does not have the power to prosecute individuals, the government will ensure allegations of sexual abuse raised by the commission can be investigated and, if proved, prosecuted.

GUIDE TO THE ROYAL COMMISSION
Why is the government holding a royal commission on child sex abuse?
The inquiry was triggered by revelations of child sex abuse in institutions, such as churches, and evidence that the abuse had been covered up or ignored, the Prime Minister says. The inquiry aims to provide a chance for ''healing'' as victims tell their stories; ways to better keep children safe in institutions; and to ensure abuse is acted on.

Why does it need six commissioners?
The royal commission will deal with a large amount of evidence. Many people will want to give evidence and the commissioners might divide up the task of hearing testimony.

How long is the royal commission going to take?
The deadline is three years. A first report is due mid-next year. But the commissioners could ask for more time.

Can victims of abuse talk to the royal commission?
Victims of child sexual abuse linked to institutions can bring their stories to the inquiry. The royal commission will not look at child sexual abuse outside organisations, such as in the family. Victims of neglect and other types of abuse will not be the inquiry's focus.

Is the royal commission going to investigate every church, sporting club and welfare organisation that has been subject to child abuse allegations?
The commissioners have the power to look at any private, public or non-government organisation involved with children. It has been asked to focus on systemic issues.

Does the royal commission lay charges against people?
The inquiry will not be a police force or prosecuting body, but could set up investigative units to prepare briefs of evidence for police. The Attorney-General, Nicola Roxon, says this material could help police begin prosecutions sooner.

Does it affect the commission of inquiry on child abuse in Newcastle announced by Barry O'Farrell?
Mr O'Farrell has previously said he would reconsider his state-based inquiry if the royal commission was set to look at the same issues. The state investigation may continue but the two inquiries could co-operate to ensure they don't duplicate each other's work.

Who does the royal commission report to?
Its reports are to be provided to the Governor-General.

How much is it going to cost?
The government is yet to reveal the cost but it is likely to add up to tens of millions of dollars. This inquiry has been described as one of the largest royal commissions in Australia's history


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