Honolulu, Hawaii -- January 2002

Catholic Church sex abuse "secrecy" policy is illegal, immoral

Pope John Paul II has issued new orders that mandate Church "secrecy" in cases of child sex abuse. Issued in Latin, the "Sacramentorum sanctitatis tutela" instructs clergy to maintain "pontifical secrecy" by reporting cases of sexual abuse to Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, head of a secret Church tribunal. The two-page papal decree does not mention contacting the police or other legal authorities.

By communicating the Vatican’s secrecy orders to all U.S. bishops and priests, the parties involved could be guilty of conspiracy to hinder the prosecution, to obstruct justice, and other crimes relating to federal and state laws designed to protect children.

If Bishop Francis DiLorenzo circulated the secrecy orders to parish priests throughout the Honolulu diocese, he and all involved may have violated H.R.S. §705-520 Criminal conspiracy, which says: "A person is guilty of criminal conspiracy if, with intent to promote or facilitate the commission of a crime: (1) He agrees with one or more persons that they or one or more of them will engage in or solicit the conduct or will cause or solicit the result specified by the definition of the offense; and (2) He or another person with whom he conspired commits an overt act in pursuance of the conspiracy."

Sex abuse of children is a serious crime. Knowledge or suspicion of sex abuse must be immediately reported to the police or other government agency. Secrecy out of concern for the offender or Church reputation is never a morally acceptable or legally allowable under the law.

The Catholic Church has a long history of conspiring to cover up sexual abuse of children and nuns by the clergy. The new papal orders are a continuation of this policy and an affront to society and the rule of law.

The Vatican has spent nearly $1 billion on clergy sex abuse cases in recent years, according to the National Catholic Reporter. In Dallas, the diocese was ordered to pay $120 million in settlements for acting to cover up sex crimes. In Massachusetts, a priest was convicted of 41 counts of child molestation and was sentenced to 20 years in prison; the Church paid an undisclosed amount in settlements to the victims. The Church was recently found to have concealed the rape and abuse of nuns by priests in Africa, the U.S. and other countries.

Imagine if the Boy Scouts of America were to issue a similar policy to all of its councils; ordering leaders to keep "secret" any reports of sex abuse by scoutmasters. If this were to happen there would be an immediate public outcry and an investigation by government authorities.

We, the concerned citizens of Hawaii, protest the Catholic Church’s sex abuse “secrecy” policy because it is illegal and immoral. We call upon Bishop DiLorenzo to openly reject the Pope’s new orders and make a public statement denouncing any and all "secrecy" in cases of sex abuse by clergy. We call upon the Catholic laity to refrain from contributing money until the Church reforms and the Pope formally retracts the “secrecy” policy.

We call upon the state Attorney General and Office of Child Welfare to open a formal investigation. We call on child welfare advocates, social service organization, clergy, civil rights activists, and all other concerned citizens with child sex abuse to condemn the Pope’s nefarious scheme to protect Church interests at the expense of child safety and welfare.

For more information, please call (808) 524-6208 or send email to: action@lava.net.

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