Dr Pell muddied the waters on ‘60 Minutes’
Monday, September 9 2002
Mr Peter Westmore, News Weekly
This letter isn't concerned with the current sex accusation against Sydney Catholic Archbishop George Pell, but with whether he and the majority of the hierarchy in his Church, as others, haven't failed some other standards that ought to be set by Christian leaders.
I ask readers to examine what he did for 10 days or so in the middle of 2002, concerning "gagging" victims, and admitting his part in receiving clergy child sex-abuse complaints.
Before the telecast, he denied the "gag" existed
Sydney's Catholic Archbishop George Pell brandished a statutory declaration and threatened legal action over allegations that he had attempted to silence a sex-abuse victim by "buying him off." He lambasted Channel 9's "60 Minutes" programme that plans to telecast the allegations on Sunday. -- The West Australian, "Pell denies sex cover-up report;" Fri May 31 02, p 33.
He had called a media conference on Thursday May 30.1 He wanted "the news media" to hear his side of the matter!
The Catholic Press chimed in, criticising 60 Minutes, and even reminding readers of a previous (unrelated) Richard Carleton untruth.
Transcript of 60 Minutes
RICHARD CARLETON: And you swear them to secrecy.
GEORGE PELL: We ask them to...
RICHARD CARLETON: You swear them. You don't ask them, you swear them.
GEORGE PELL: There is a requirement that they don't talk about it. Most of them are happy not to. And if they don't want to use that, they can do something else.
RICHARD CARLETON: They can go to the courts.
GEORGE PELL: Yes.
RICHARD CARLETON: Why do you impose this condition, sir?
GEORGE PELL: Because many of them don't want to be subjected to publicity and of course it's shameful for the Church.
RICHARD CARLETON: Archbishop, thank you.
GEORGE PELL: Good, thank you. -- 60 Minutes, televised June 2 20022
Dr Pell held another news conference on Monday June 3.3 According to news reports, he said there was no such confidentiality clause and anyone who accepted a compensation payment was free to disclose the details if they wished. He had made a critical mistake, he said, when he told 60 Minutes that "there is a requirement that they don't talk about it."
During this period the media had reported his claims that he had been ambushed, and that "hush money" was anathema to him. Newspapers, radio and television reported his repeated denials (in spite of having admitted it in the words "There is a requirement that they don't talk about it.") for about 10 days, joined by Melbourne Archbishop Denis Hart during the (customary) "apology to the victims" phase of the media campaign.
But -- the Pell media campaign came to an awkward end on June 9 when Guild of Catholic Lawyers president John McCarthy QC admitted that the silence clause was in the compensation contracts.4
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1 The West Australian, "Archbishop in sex abuse bribes row," Sat June 1 02, p 16, para 5
2 60 Minutes, "Loss of Faith," http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/sixtyminutes/stories/2002_06_02/ story_603.asp , (2nd part), Richard Carleton, June 2, 2002
3 The West Australian, "Pell denial deepens Church sex storm," Tue June 4 02, p 5, para 3
4 The West Australian, "Church admits hush edict," Mon June 10 02, p 3
2
The much-maligned news media reported: "A lawyer speaking for Dr Pell said confidentiality clauses had been kept in compensation agreements between the Church and sex abuse victims even though the Church's own policy forbade such conditions." He blamed professionals for the retention of the clause.
Readers, did you notice that word "retention"? In other words, the policy had always been to "gag" those who received the compensation (which, incidentally, by overseas standards, is quite niggardly).
But there wasn't one word of apology for the accusations against 60 Minutes! And there was no explanation of how he could have been handling the complaints of people like David Ridsdale and the parents of the two girls who had been abused, and later on being in charge of the whole archdiocese of Melbourne, and not know what the Church was doing!
If anyone wants to look at another aspect of Archbishop Pell, read this dialogue with both eyes open:
RICHARD CARLETON: Did David Ridsdale tell you that his uncle, Gerald, Father Gerald, had been abusing him?
GEORGE PELL: Never. Never.
RICHARD CARLETON: Never?
GEORGE PELL: At any stage.
RICHARD CARLETON: He says he did.
GEORGE PELL: Well, that's completely false.
RICHARD CARLETON: It didn't happen?
GEORGE PELL: Didn't happen.
RICHARD CARLETON: He says that in January 93 he rang you and told you.
GEORGE PELL: Oh, well, that's 1993. I thought you were talking about back in the '70s. Ridsdale would have been in jail I think by then. -- 60 Minutes, June 2 2002 5
Four denials! That's more than St Peter! I wonder if a cock crowed, in line with the gospels!6
Yours faithfully,
(Signed)
Prev. sent: Chronology 1-2, Minilist
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5 60 Minutes, "Loss of Faith," http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/sixtyminutes/stories/2002_06_02/ story_603.asp , (2nd part), June 2, 2002
6 Matthew 26:74, Luke 22:60, John 18:27
Study more at http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/minilist.htm
EPILOGUE: This letter was written because the news media and the public did not seem to have picked up on what seemed to be public repeated denials of "silence money," and Dr Pell's four attempts during the interview to deny that victim Ridsdale had told him of being abused. Comment magazines such as News Weekly and AD 2000, in spite of having ample time from June 2 onwards to analyse these and other Church spokespeople's inconsistencies, have acted as if they believed the "60 Minutes" programmes and other news media were at fault. (This is culpable, and is traditional for people who co-operate with criminal clergy.) For an example, see "Trial by media: The attacks on Archbishop Pell;" News Weekly, Sep 7 02, pp 4-5.
Dr Pell did NOT make a "critical mistake" about silencing victims at the interview. When asked "Why do you impose this condition, sir?" Dr Pell gave two reasons, both usual in such embarrassing situations. During his 10 days of denial, more victims showed their contracts with the "silence" clause to the news media.
LATER COMMENT: In December 2002 there was another
confirmation that two years after supposedly adopting reforms, "silence" is still in the Church's documents. Sister Angela Ryan, head of the Towards Healing committee, said that work on removing the "silence" clauses was "in progress." -- Australian Catholics, Melbourne, "Healing touch," by Kent Rosenthal SJ, Christmas 2002, page 23 a
Related Links
News Weekly
at www.newsweekly.org.au
60 Minutes
at http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au
Sydney Catholic Archdiocese:
www.sydney.catholic.org.au/index.htm
Broken Rites, Australian support group for people affected by sexual, physical or emotional abuse in religious institutions: http://brokenrites.alphalink.com.au
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