Letter apologises for church abuse

Marist Brothers Province of Australia has written an open letter to communities within the Sale Diocese apologising for sexual abuse within the church and encouraging victims to seek support.

The open letter, circulated amongst parishes and schools within the diocese, encourages community members to contact the Marist brothers’ professional standards office for assistance to access counselling, apology and seek compensation.

The letter also encouraged any victims or anyone with knowledge of offences to report matters to police.

Brother Peter Carroll said Marist Brothers Province of Australia joined with church, government and non-government institutions to support the recent national apology.

“There simply can be no greater breach of the trust of children, their families and their communities.

“The abuse of a child has tragic, enduring and profound consequences, often across lifetimes for them, their families and their communities.

“We acknowledge that enormous pain, suffering and distress have resulted from the criminal actions by some of our own Brothers, as well as lay people in our employment,” he said.

Br Carroll said they supported the national apology as another important step in the acceptance and acknowledgement of the terrible events and damage caused.

“As much as we would wish it otherwise, we cannot change the past.

“All we can do is continue to work cooperatively to bring some healing to those whose lives have been damaged, as well as understanding and building on the lessons learned to ensure that these events are not repeated.

He said Marist schools had strict guidelines in place to protect all students, reinforced by comprehensive staff training, as well as mandatory requirements providing a safer place for children.

Br Carroll said they also had been working to address the consequences of the past, based on three key elements: counselling, apology and monetary compensation.

The Marist Brothers have applied to be accepted into the National Redress Scheme and are working with the federal government to conclude that process so that applications can start being assessed.

He said reporting to the police of any knowledge or information about wrongdoing was essential for justice to be served.

The Marist Brothers professional standards office can be contacted on (02) 92184000.