J-10
06-19-2004, 06:40 PM
Australian Police Arrest Nine Men in Anglican Church for Alleged Child *** Abuse
The Associated Press
ADELAIDE, Australia June 19, 2004 — Police have arrested nine men within South Australia state's Anglican Church for alleged child *** abuse, police said Sunday.
It was not immediately known whether the men were priests. Police said they would provide more details at a briefing later Sunday.
A task force set up by police identified 217 child *** abuse victims and 48 possible offenders by late last year.
The task force was established in response to claims of up to 200 cases of child *** abuse in the Anglican Church in Adelaide in past decades.
The arrests came as the Anglican Church apologized Sunday to victims of child *** abuse following a controversy that forced Archbishop Ian George to resign only months before his scheduled retirement.
George initiated an independent report into the handling of the *** abuse allegations, which found the church's priority was to protect itself at the expense of victims.
An apology was read at all Anglican services in Adelaide Sunday.
"We apologize for the shameful way we have actively worked against and discouraged those who have come to us and reported abuse," the apology said.
"We are ashamed to have to acknowledge we only took notice when the survivors of abuse became a threat to us."
George, whose tenure was to end in August, was not personally accused of abuse, but he was criticized for not dealing adequately with alleged victims molested by church workers.
The report presented to South Australia's state Parliament earlier this month claimed George repeatedly undermined or ignored complaints of abuse.
After publication of the report, George said he was "ashamed of the way ... we have obviously fallen short of what we should have done."
Australia's Anglican Church was plunged into crisis more than two years ago when Peter Hollingworth, then Australia's governor general, was disgraced in an Anglican Church inquiry that found he failed to take strong action against known pedophiles in the church when he was a bishop in the early 1990s.
He resigned as the British queen's representative in Australia last year.
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/ap20040619_1350.html
The Associated Press
ADELAIDE, Australia June 19, 2004 — Police have arrested nine men within South Australia state's Anglican Church for alleged child *** abuse, police said Sunday.
It was not immediately known whether the men were priests. Police said they would provide more details at a briefing later Sunday.
A task force set up by police identified 217 child *** abuse victims and 48 possible offenders by late last year.
The task force was established in response to claims of up to 200 cases of child *** abuse in the Anglican Church in Adelaide in past decades.
The arrests came as the Anglican Church apologized Sunday to victims of child *** abuse following a controversy that forced Archbishop Ian George to resign only months before his scheduled retirement.
George initiated an independent report into the handling of the *** abuse allegations, which found the church's priority was to protect itself at the expense of victims.
An apology was read at all Anglican services in Adelaide Sunday.
"We apologize for the shameful way we have actively worked against and discouraged those who have come to us and reported abuse," the apology said.
"We are ashamed to have to acknowledge we only took notice when the survivors of abuse became a threat to us."
George, whose tenure was to end in August, was not personally accused of abuse, but he was criticized for not dealing adequately with alleged victims molested by church workers.
The report presented to South Australia's state Parliament earlier this month claimed George repeatedly undermined or ignored complaints of abuse.
After publication of the report, George said he was "ashamed of the way ... we have obviously fallen short of what we should have done."
Australia's Anglican Church was plunged into crisis more than two years ago when Peter Hollingworth, then Australia's governor general, was disgraced in an Anglican Church inquiry that found he failed to take strong action against known pedophiles in the church when he was a bishop in the early 1990s.
He resigned as the British queen's representative in Australia last year.
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/ap20040619_1350.html