33 cases of sex abuse by Catholic priests

Catholic priests have been implicated in 33 cases of sexual abuse in South Africa. Cardinal Wilfrid Napier issued a public apology 13 years ago, promising sweeping reforms after sexual abuse by priests was exposed in an international scandal. That painful chapter of history is back on the agenda after being made into an acclaimed film that will be screened in South Africa next year, notes a TimesLIVE report. Spotlight relates how the Boston Globe exposed clergy abuse in the US during an investigation that morphed into a global scandal. The secretary-general of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference, Sister Hermenegild Makoro, said 33 cases of clergy sexual abuse had been reported since the scandal broke in 2003. Reforms promised by Napier in 2003 included drawing up a list of priest sex offenders, reporting child abuse to authorities, even if their parents declined, and stopping the transfer of predatory priests from parish to parish. ‘We do have a list of sex offenders of reported cases which have been dealt with through the professional conduct committees. Cases involving the sexual abuse of minors are forwarded to the Congregation for Doctrine and Faith at the Holy See in Rome,’ Makoro said, according to the report.