A Decree of Promulgation was signed yesterday by the Bishop of Port-Victoria Mgr Alain Harel and the Chancellor of the Diocese Father Edwin Mathiot indicating the procedures to be followed by anyone who finds himself in the presence of an allegation of sexual abuse of minors involving a cleric . The ceremony took place at La Domus, Victoria, yesterday morning.

Bishop Harel explained that this decree concerns clerics (bishops, priests and deacons) but also wants to be a contribution of the Church. “This protocol is indeed called to be for the diocesan community a reference and a guide in the face of all these cases of sexual assault on minors and also for the accompaniment of the persons concerned – victims as well as accused. It is also intended as a tool to help prevent cases of sexual assault on minors. This protocol is also an acknowledgment on the part of the diocesan Church of the respect due to the civil legislation in force in the country”, said Bishop Harel.

The Church has a duty of truth to bring out and of justice to ensure, underlined Bishop Harel.

Procedure to follow in the event of an allegation:

Bishop Harel explains that “when an allegation of sexual assault on a minor is made against a cleric, the following procedure will be adopted. If it is the Bishop who receives the complaint directly from the victim and/or his relatives or from other sources, he will entrust his delegate with the responsibility of conducting a preliminary investigation”.

If the alleged complaint is brought to the attention of a priest, a nun or a lay person, the latter will refer the complaint to the Bishop or to the episcopal delegate, or in his absence to his deputy.

Bishop Harel continues his explanation by saying that at this preliminary stage of the investigation, the bishop can have recourse to the advice of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) if he considers it necessary and everything is bound by professional secrecy.

“If the facts alleged concern a religious cleric, the bishop will transmit, without delay, to the superior general of the religious the information received. It is desirable that the bishop and the superior agree on who will lead the investigation”.

During the investigation, there will be a diocesan committee which will meet the two parties and the episcopal delegate, after having heard the alleged victim and the cleric accused by the latter and the witnesses, submits to the Bishop the acts of the investigation as well than his personal opinion. It will be up to the bishop to decree the closing of the preliminary investigation.

That said, Bishop Harel also added that in parallel, the church will advise the parents of the victim to register a complaint with the local police and an investigation will take place in parallel.

The decree contains four parts. In the first part, we discuss topics such as: fundamental principles of child protection and the commitment to transparency and accountability; definition of sexual assault and of the clerk according to canon law and definition of sexual assault according to civil law.

In the second part, the decree mainly addresses the diocesan structure to deal with cases of allegations of sexual assault on minors and the collaboration of the Church with the civil authorities.

The third part talks about the provisions concerning the bishops and the fourth part talks about the prevention of Abuse and protection of children.

To conclude, Bishop Harel maintains that the first responsibility of the Church is to prevent and raise awareness of the problem of sexual abuse of children in order to be better equipped to intervene and accompany child victims and thus ensure the protection of children. . Awareness will be done through awareness sessions for the Christian community on this issue.

The launch of this important decree was also assisted by Father Eric Léon, Sister Alice and Mrs. Noella Gonthier who helped draft the decree.

Source: Seychelles Nation