Cardinal George Pell says he will support the Royal Commission into child abuse - but how will we know whether it has been effective or not?
Paul Miller / AAP
Since Monday’s announcement of the creation of a Royal Commission into institutional child abuse there has been some discussion about what this might achieve. In short how will a Royal Commission be different…
Should the law of God or the law of the land govern the confessional box?
flickr/emilio
In response to the ongoing cascade of accusations and evidence of systemic and decades long child abuse, the federal government finally announced a Royal Commission into institutional responses to child…
Evidence shows sexual abuse is more likely to occur in particular kinds of institutional cultures, such as the Catholic Church.
Roger Smith
For victims and their advocates, the Prime Minister’s announcement of a Royal Commission into the role of institutions in the abuse of children represents a long-awaited shift in the way Australia approaches…
A royal commission into institutionalised sexual abuse in the Catholic Church in Australia has been announced.
AAP/Dave Hunt
Prime Minister Julia Gillard has announced a royal commission into child abuse in churches, schools and foster homes. The inquiry will include, but not be limited to, allegations of abuse in the Catholic…
Cardinal George Pell says there is insufficient evidence to hold a Royal Commission into claims of sexual abuse by the Catholic Church.
AAP/Dean Lewins
Report after damning report is rapidly revealing the dirty secrets of the Catholic Church. As fresh allegations and evidence abound, it seems we have a seismic shift in the battle for justice for victims…
As the Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry into child abuse looms, Archbishop Denis Hart and three of his bishops have forewarned their Victorian flock of imminent disturbing reports about past failures of…
Hitting and other forms of harsh physical punishment is associated with mental health problems later in life.
Spamily
Research published this month in the journal Pediatrics confirms what child advocates have long known: it’s never okay to hit children. Study author Tracie Afifi and her colleagues investigated the link…
Cardinal George Pell has faced questions about what he knew regarding allegations of sexual abuse by priests.
AAP/Dean Lewins
The ABC’s 4 Corners this week exposed blatant concealment of a priest’s sexual assaults and rapes of children by the Catholic church in NSW. Admissions of guilt were made by the offender and documented…
Victorian victims of clergy sex crimes and their families have been fighting for justice for years – some for decades. The previous Labor state government did nothing for them. The Baillieu government…
Nearly 90% of the long term homeless people surveyed in the study had experienced child abuse.
SamPac
Failing to help the homeless can come with a high cost to the public purse, with many ending up in hospitals for treatment of substance abuse and chronic health problems, a study has found. A joint research…
Women who are raped, sexually assaulted, bashed by a partner or stalked are much more likely to develop mental health problems than women who do not experience gender-based violence, a study has found…