New Vatican rules response to Maltese inquiries delays - victim

A Maltese victim of alleged sex abuse by priests is convinced that the Vatican's new rules on the procedures to follow "are partially a result of the scandalous delay" in the investigation by the Church's Response Team in a case involving him.

Joe Magro, one of several men who have alleged sex abuse by priests while resident at the St Joseph orphanage, said the Church's new rules were good and "more than welcome".

The allegations made seven years ago are still being investigated by the Church-appointed Response Team headed by Judge Victor Caruana Colombo.

"The Vatican is taking our case very seriously and I am convinced that these new rules are, in part, a result of the scandalous delay in our case," Mr Magro said.

The Vatican's Promoter of Faith and Justice, Mgr Charles Scicluna was in Malta last month to meet the alleged victims and hear their testimony first-hand. His work was intended to supplement the investigation by the Response Team.

On Thursday, the Vatican published new rules, among others giving the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith the power to bypass its own judicial process and issue an "extrajudicial decree" against priests involved in sex abuse cases. The Congregation already had these powers but, with the changes, the extrajudicial proceedings are now an integral part of canon law.

According to Mgr Scicluna, one of the arguments that can justify extrajudicial proceedings is a delay in the preliminary investigation. It is only after the bishop passes on the preliminary investigation report to the Vatican that the Congregation can decide to forego normal procedures and issue an extrajudicial decree.

When contacted, Judge Caruana Colombo said the Response Team would only pass on a report to the Archbishop "when all witnesses are heard".

"I cannot comment on individual cases but there have been instances when the Response Team closed its case, passing on its report to the Archbishop only to have other people coming up later wanting to testify," he said.

He would not say whether in the much-publicised case involving former residents at the St Joseph orphanage the Response Team had passed on its report to the Archbishop.

ksansone@timesofmalta.com