Cardinal faces court battle over cover up allegations

The head of Ireland's Catholic Church faces a court battle over allegations he covered up shocking complaints made against notor-ious paedophile priest Fr Brendan Smyth.

Cardinal Sean Brady is being sued in his personal capacity - as well as his role as Catholic Primate of All Ireland - by a woman who was victimised by the brutal sex attacker for five years.

The woman maintains the senior cleric was one of three priests who interviewed her as a teenager in 1975 about her five-year long ordeal and then failed to ensure it was reported to the civil authorities, including the gardai.

Cardinal Sean Brady yesterday night faced down calls for his resignation over revelations he failed to report complaints against a notorious paedophile priest to authorities.

Catholic Primate Cardinal Sean Brady admitted he was at a meeting where children abused by Fr Brendan Smyth were forced to take a vow of silence. But the senior churchman defended his role in the 1975 investigation, stating his actions were part of a process that removed the shamed cleric's licence to act as a priest.

Fr Smyth continued to molest children until he was finally jailed in the mid-1990s and died behind bars.

Survivors of sex abuse accused the Cardinal of reckless en-dangerment and demanded he resign.

"Frankly I don't believe that this is a resigning matter," said Cardinal Brady.

"I insist again I did act and acted effectively in that inquiry to produce the grounds for removing Fr Smyth from ministry and specifically it was underlined he was not to hear confessions, and that was very important."

Just three months ago the Cardinal stated he would resign if he felt his failure to act had allowed children to be abused. However, it has emerged that 35 years ago Cardinal Brady - then a part-time secretary to the then Bishop of Kilmore, the late Bishop Francis McKiernan - took notes during two meetings with children who he believed had been abused by Fr Smyth.

The complainants then signed undertakings, on oath, to respect the confidentiality of the information gathering process.