Fr Hans Zollner: The Church is committed to safeguarding children
(Vatican Radio) Jesuit Father Hans Zollner, head of the Institute of Psychology at
the Gregorian University in Rome and Centre for the Protection of Minors, says the
Church has learnt lessons and has made great strides in the safeguarding of children.He
made the comments to Vatican Radio following the publication of a report issued on
Wednesday by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child which accused the Vatican
of turning a blind eye to decades of sexual abuse of children by priests.
The
report comes less than a month after a meeting between the United Nations Committee
and a Holy See delegation in Geneva.
Fr Zollner said the report was “harsh
in parts but recognises that the Holy See and the Church as a whole has made steps
forward.”
Asked about references made in the report to issues such as abortion,
homosexuality and contraception, Fr Zollner said there was no reason for these issues
to be included, he said, “it looks as if some people… just wanted to make their point…”
Reflecting
on the strides the Church has made in the field of child protection, Fr Zollner said
that the Catholic Church in countries such as Germany, Ireland and the US is the only
institution making inroads in child safeguarding but he points out that more efforts
need to be made, especially in the area of helping and doing justice to the victims
of abuse. Listen to Lydia O’Kane’s interview with Jesuit Fr Hans Zollner