Statement from Fiona Patten MP
Member for Northern Metropolitan and Leader of the Reason Party
It is with great disappointment that I note the High Court of Australia’s decision in the matter of George Pell this morning.
In my view, justice has not been served in this case. Australians know the real truth about George Pell. No amount of holy water can wash the stain of child sexual abuse away from the Catholic Church.
There have been other accusations against George Pell and they should be fully investigated by authorities.
In 2001, I released a book called ‘Hypocrites’ detailing sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. George Pell came out hard against me, dismissing all the accusations as trivial gossip.
It was disgusting behaviour from a man who knew the extent of the problem and was an integral part of the cover up.
The decision today will not ‘fix’ the Catholic Church. The pain body in that church, which still seems to be in denial about the suffering they have caused and then covered up, will never fade away.
The Catholic Church is in crisis. Church attendance is falling dramatically and respect for Catholic religious orders is at an all time low – and rightfully so.
It is now the time for the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses into Child Sexual Abuses to release their full report without redactions. The parts of the Commissions report that dealt with George Pell were kept from the public because of his legal issues.
Now that has been resolved, they should be made public immediately.
– Ends –
