Victims call for child protection role change after priest resigns

CLERICAL abuse victims have called for the role of the diocesan child protection delegate to be re-evaluated by the Catholic Church in the aftermath of the resignation of Cloyne delegate Father Bill Bermingham.

Fr Bermingham stood down from his designate role after public outcry at his decision to hand over an informal victim statement to an accused priest before the priest was subjected to Garda interview.

Fr Bermingham had defended his actions robustly, declaring that he was only complying with Church guidelines which state details should be given to the accused. He said he did not know that gardaí intended to interview the victim.

Fr Bermingham himself had reported the abuse to gardaí and the HSE.

The woman at the centre of the case had said that when she met with Fr Bermingham, she was assured that the meeting would be "totally confidential". She has said she was not made aware that Fr Bermingham was taking notes.

However, her disclosures to Fr Bermingham were later forwarded to the priest she was accusing and two other senior priests. The accused priest was given access to her informal comments twice – once verbally and he later requested a written copy for his solicitor.

Last night the victim said: "This resignation is a farce as the existing guidelines allow for something like this to happen all over again. They allow for a delegate to pass over all the detail that they know, as Church guidelines state that ‘detail’ be given to the accused.

"I strongly believe that these delegates have no right to act in the role of a garda. Information to an abuser surrounding an abuse allegation should only come from a detective in an interview. I was also shocked at the audacity of Fr Bermingham to suggest, in his statement, that he did not know that the priest would be interviewed by gardaí".

Outspoken abuse victim Andrew Madden has said priests should not be child protection delegates and that a fully-trained full-time professionals should carry out this role instead.

"I was horrified at what happened in Cloyne yet the priest says he didn’t break any guidelines by doing this. As there is in the Archdiocese of Dublin, there should be a full-time fully-trained professional in that role.".

The Irish Examiner disclosed on Friday how the National Board for Safeguarding Children had requested a meeting with Fr Bermingham after the victim in this case questioned his actions.

That night, Fr Bermingham issued a statement strongly defending his behaviour even though for six days previously, this newspaper had repeatedly requested an interview with him.

In his statement on Friday, Fr Bermingham said, under Church guidelines, he was obliged to give the accused person "enough detail about the allegation to be able to offer a response".

Cobh-based Father John McCarthy will temporarily replace Fr Bermingham in his child protection role

Commenting on the resignation, Archbishop Clifford thank Fr Bermingham for his " unstinting and selfless commitment" to his role as child protection delegate.

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