Priests will not be excused for withholding information about alleged
child abuse even if it is given to them during the holy sacrament of
confession, Justice Minster Alan Shatter has said.
In an
unprecedented display of tough action against the Catholic Church in
Ireland, new laws are to be brought in by autumn which could see clerics
and others imprisoned for up to five years if they do not volunteer
information about suspected paedophilia.
Mr Shatter has warned doctors will also be expected to abandon the
age-old Hippocratic oath - the traditional code of ethical medical
practice - of sworn confidentiality with patients, if it relates to
sexual abuse.
The legislation will leave "no grey legal areas" around the
investigation and prosecution of anybody who conceals or fails to report
to gardai sexual offences against children or vulnerable adults, said
the Justice Minister.
Asked if this included the likes of priests hearing confessions and
doctors talking with patients, Mr Shatter said the law will apply to
everyone and that the internal rules of any organisation - faith or
otherwise - did not matter.
He said the move was about what the state
expected of every individual and organisation involved in child
protection.
Mr Shatter said the Cloyne report could not be starker or more
disturbing. He has handed a copy to Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan
who has appointed his Assistant Commissioner Derek Byrne to examine if
any further prosecutions can be taken against the clerical abusers in
the diocese.
The force watchdog, the Garda Ombudsman, has also been asked to look
into concerns over the actions of some gardai identified in the report.
Mr Shatter apologised on behalf of the state where it failed any victims.
Children's Minister Frances Fitzgerald said the report heralded the
end of voluntary compliance over child protection measures and that all
organisations - religious, sporting, educational or medical - will be
treated the same in the state's eyes.
"There will be no exceptions, no exemptions," she said.