Pope orders clergy to report all sex abuse

Pop e Francis has issued a ground-breaking law requiring all Catholic priests and nuns around the world to report clergy sexual abuse and cover-up by their superior s to church authorities in a new effort to hold the Catholic hierarchy accountable for failing to protect their flocks.

The new church law provides whistleblower pro-tections and requires all dioceses around the world to have a system in place to receive the claims confidentially. It also outlines procedures for conducting preliminary investigations when the accused is a bishop, cardinal or religious superior.

It is the latest effort by Francis to respond to the global eruption of the sex abuse and cover-up scandal that has devastated the credibility of the Catholic hierarchy.