‘Seize Church lands to pay for abuses’, says Government

[Rob Northall]

After repeatedly telling 4 Ministers for Education that the Indemnity Deal was Unconstitutional Ireland must be on the brink of Disaster for these 2 Clown to talk about taking on the Vatican!

It's merely Posturing and Distraction and will never happen!

Read On >

Monday, March 13, 2017

Daniel McConnell and Fiachra Ó Cionnaith

The Government is on a collision course with the Vatican over the funding of redress payments to sex abuse victims, saying it wants to seize lands owned by the Church.

In some of the strongest terms used against the Church by an Irish government, Taoiseach Enda Kenny warned Church authorities they must “get on with it” in terms of meeting their share of the cost of compensating victims of abuse.

Mr Kenny said the Church must “measure up to the responsibilities that they accepted”.

Speaking in Philadelphia, Mr Kenny said religious orders must “reflect on the seriousness of this” before they are forced to do so.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny stands with Minister of State for the Diaspora and International Development TD Joe McHugh at the Irish Memorial in Philadelphia.

He was speaking after Health Minister Simon Harris said there is “significant merit” in looking at seizing hospital and school lands owned by the Church as a means of meeting the €1.6bn cost of sexual abuse redress payments.

Mr Harris said the failure of the Church to meet its commitments is “completely unacceptable” and called on Pope Francis to instruct religious orders here to “pay over and pay up”.

He said the congregations’ current contribution was “pathetic and paltry”, adding that Irish religious leaders should tell them to pay up now.

“What we have to do is look at what we can do and there is significant merit at looking at hospital land and looking at school property,” said Mr Harris. “What I have been thinking about in recent days is what levers are at the disposal of the State.”

He said the State continues to fund hospitals where they are owned by the Church, as well as schools.

“The Government will consider each and every legal tool at our disposal,” said Mr Harris.

He called the 2002 deal between the Fianna Fáil-led government and the Church “economically and socially illiterate”, as it indemnified the Church from the growing cost of redress for abuses.

“There is an outstanding amount under the existing agreement and the current contribution sought from the Church is pathetic and paltry and the fact they haven’t even paid that is going to be pursued immediately,” he continued.

Mr Harris then took direct aim at religious leaders, requesting that “the next time they make a homily and contribute to this public debate, they would call on all religious institutions to pay up and that call should go all the way to the Vatican”.

Mr Kenny said the time has come for the Church to “get on with it” and he “would expect that the Vatican would respond” to issues he previously raised in relation to clerical abuse.

“I would expect that the congregations and the Church would reflect on the seriousness of this and measure up to their requirements,” he said. “I referred a number of matters to the Pope when I met with him last year and I would expect that the Vatican would respond to those.”

To date, religious orders have contributed just 13% to the compensation fund. This contribution is underpinned by an agreement with 18 religious orders negotiated by former Fianna Fáil minister Michael Woods in 2002.

Fianna Fáil TD John McGuinness said he does not believe that agreement was the best one for the State and that it may not be legally watertight.

Archbishop of Dublin Dr Diarmuid Martin said “everything must be done” to enable the truth to emerge. He said the sad facts coming to light around the treatment of children and mothers in Church-run institutions lead us again to challenge the Church in Ireland to a deep self-examination and repentance.

“It is not something that can be wallpapered over or interpreted by clever spin-doctors,” he said.

“Everything must be done to enable the truth to emerge. We must confess the role of the Church in the building-up of a culture which failed to recognise the presence of Jesus in the smallest and the weakest.”

Source - http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/seize-church-lands-to-pay-for-...

Further Reading

The Unconstitutional Indemnity Deal

and

A background to the Indemnity Deal, and Redress Board

[jack colleton]

Shared On Twitter.

[Maurice Heaphy]

Probably a whole load of Hot Air i reckon! Kenny and Co are Great for mouthing on and on about what they will do, but at the end of the day will do Nothing! It will indeed be interesting to see, What, if anything they will do to Recoup their outstanding debts. 

[jack colleton]

Recruited By The Church.  Taking Care Of Church Business. Making Sure Justice Denied Stays That Way.

[pauline jackson]

Well treating them as trustworthy on the one hand and expecting them to pay up is sending the wrong message. Leaving them in charge of hospitals and schools as if thay were capable of deal with the ill or the youth is a Dangerous way of treating them. Thay have caused too much harm over so many years

[pauline jackson]

And as thay are funded the tax payers are still paying.

[jack colleton]

The Get Out Of Court / Jail Deal No Help At All To All The Victims / Survivors ...... Not "Spared Trauma"

[Barbie]

These people were all protected by the state, to date how many of the abusers have been jailed? They were given more protection than any of the children they abused in their care. During the Redress Court we as survivors were forced to sit in front of Judge, Barristers and Solicitors those that represented the state, the Religious Orders of the people that abused us and were basically told to either except the award given or get nothing. Not one of the religious orders showed up to answer for themselves instead they sent their representative not one apology from anyone and you were made to feel like you were the criminal instead of the other way around. You were then duped into signing a waiver document that more than likely you really didn't know what you were actually signing that turned out to be another from of protection to again protect the State, the Religious and Redress from further prosecution. You were also told this was an award not compensation and some of the survivors got a lot more awarded to them than others some people barley got the price of a new sofa while other got enough to buy new houses. This was and is totally wrong to tell victims that someone else's abuse was worth more than yours to me Abuse is Abuse that was committed by and in an Irish State and Religious Run Organisations.    

[james fox]

very well said barby i have said oll along what you were thinking ..j fox 

[jack colleton]

"They were given more protection than any of the children they abused in their care."

wow.  Powerful  Statement.