CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE INQUIRY HEARS FROM VICTIMS SUPPORT GROUPS
A Victorian parliamentary inquiry has been urged to question Catholic Church employees about the whereabouts of documents that might show sexual abuse being covered up.
The American-based founder of an international victims support group appeared before the inquiry on Monday.
Barbara Blaine of the 'Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests', told the inquiry the church uses many of the same tactics to conceal abuse in Australia as it does worldwide.
She says the inquiry will need to do more than request documents from the church to prove senior officials chose to ignore to paedophilia.
"Bring in the employees and former employees and ask them to swear under oath what documents exist," she told the inquiry.
"When that happens in other jurisdictions we find many more documents exist and more truth is exposed."
She also called for better support services for victims who come forward.
Another witness from the same support group, Nicky Davis, earlier described the lack of counselling for victims in Victoria as obscene.
She says the vast majority of victims are not ge...
Winter Appeal 2023
To our friends,
2023 has been a long year with many ups and downs for us all. As we close out the year, we at SNAP hope that you are feeling like you are on your way to being healthy, fulfilled, and happy. This past year has brought both successes and challenges. Thanks to the support you have shown in the past, we’ve been able to celebrate the good days and weather the stormy ones. Now, we are once again asking for your support as we work to support survivors new and old as we ‘Move SNAP Forward.’
At SNAP we are proud to have hosted a very well-attended conference in August 2023. This event allowed us to gather friends, survivors, advocates, and allies for a weekend of camaraderie and connection. We were so happy to be able to welcome many first-time attendees to gather in person and are already looking forward to the next conference.
To strengthen our movement for justice, healing, and prevention, SNAP will be expanding our peer support and providing more volunteer opportunities in the coming year. Through this great work, we are ensuring survivor voices are represented as we work for significant change that will benefit children and survivors.
Right now, survivors worldwide are getting the help they need from SNAP, and more and more reach out to us daily, but we need your help to keep those programs going and get our volunteers the training they need to thrive.
Your tax-deductible gift to SNAP can help offset the cost of our important mission. If you are not in a position to contribute, you can still support us by sharing this letter with those who can. As we continue to fight for survivors across the globe, your donation or sharing the great work SNAP does will help us continue our work to protect the vulnerable, heal the wounded, and prevent abuse.
Your donation ensures SNAP will be there for those who need us more than ever!
Warmly,
Michael W. McDonnell, C.P.S.
Interim Executive Director