SAFEGUARDING CHILDREN AND ADULTS AT RISK
Catholic Religious Australia (CRA) unreservedly expresses our sorrow for the immense pain that people have suffered through abuse and failure to respond appropriately to abuse. We acknowledge that abuse can irreparably damage the life of the abused, their family, carers and friends, and that the pain and suffering is on-going.
The release of the final report of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in 2017 was the culmination of almost five years of intense examination of the way in which many different institutions, and in a particular way, the Catholic Church, have historically failed and harmed children. The Royal Commission has also been an important validation of the courage of survivors of abuse in seeking truth and justice.
The extent of the abuse has affected all in our country and we acknowledge that the highest number of private hearings in the Royal Commission related to the Catholic Church. We reflect on those figures with deep regret and shame. The Royal Commission has had a significant impact on the way the Catholic Church operates in Australia and although nothing will right the wrongs that have been committed, CRA recognises that now is the time for action.
More recently, the Royal Commission into Aged Care, Quality and Safety and the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability, have found that Australia’s institutions are also failing vulnerable adults. These findings have spurred the Catholic Church to proactively consider how it might also safeguard adults at risk.
CRA, in its capacity as the peak body representing Leaders of Religious Institutes and Societies of Apostolic Life in the Australian Church, continues in its resolve to support changes in our Church. , especially for the young and the vulnerable. The manner in which the Church responds to situations of risk is also a vital area of focus.
CRA’S COMMITMENT TO SAFEGUARDING
CRA is committed to ongoing reviews of its policies and processes, in consultation with experts, to support best practice in the safeguarding of all. Additionally, CRA is working with religious institutes to understand, embed and live in ways that keep everyone safe, particularly children and adults at risk. CRA’s annual National Day of Sorrow and Promise emphasises the need to keep the abuse that occurred within and through our Church at the forefront so that such abuse never occurs again.
Read CRA’s Safeguarding Commitment Statement.
This Statement is supported by CRA’s safeguarding documents: