Canadian Bishops this week launched a national bilingual service to report cases of sexual abuse committed or concealed by a bishop. This service reinforces their commitment to accountability, accountability, and transparency in clergy sexual abuse, and to further facilitate healing and justice for victims and survivors.
The Canadian System for Reporting Sexual Abuse or Covered Up by a Catholic Bishop responds directly to Pope Francis’ apostolic letter, Vos estis lux mundi ( You are the light of the world ). In this letter, the Pope calls on the dioceses and eparchies around the world to establish “… one or more stable and easily accessible systems for the public to allow reports to be presented…”. With Vos estis lux mundi, the Pope indicates what procedures must be followed in the universal Church when allegations are made against a bishop. Thus, it updates, clarifies, and standardizes practices around the world. The bishops’ reporting system adds an additional layer of accountability for Church leaders in Canada, in addition to already existing diocesan and eparchial protocols, for reporting and responding to sexual abuse or other sexual misconduct by individuals. priests, deacons, men, and women religious and commissioned lay pastoral staff.
“Our society must aim to create a climate of security where the abuse of children and vulnerable people is simply not tolerated, and where their support is essential”, begins Ms. Delphine Collin-Vézina, Ph.D., director of the Research Center for Children and Families, and Director of the Canadian Consortium for Child and Youth Injuries, as well as Full Professor in the School of Social Work and Associate Member in the Department of Pediatrics at McGill University. She says: “The newly established national bilingual system for reporting sexual abuse, sexual misconduct, or cover-up by a Catholic bishop in Canada is an important step in this direction. This system is rooted in a victim-first approach and aims to remove multiple barriers that prevent disclosure. These abuses have been silenced and covered up for too long, leaving victims and survivors speechless. I applaud this initiative led by the Bishops of Canada, which will hopefully facilitate the healing and recovery of those who have been abused. “
ClearView Strategic Partners, a Canadian provider of independent whistleblowing and whistleblowing platforms, has been engaged by the Bishops of Canada to develop a whistleblowing system in accordance with the instructions and procedures set out in Vos estis lux mundi. This new reporting system is designed to receive and report to the appropriate Church authorities reports of sexual abuse, sexual misconduct (e.g., sexual harassment or possession of child pornography), or cover-up of such situations by a Catholic bishop. ClearView’s technology will be useful to anyone who wants to make such a report by providing them with a secure and confidential platform, which allows them to remain anonymous if they wish and ensures that all communications are documented and preserved.
The Catholic Bishops of Canada condemn the sin and crime of sexual abuse in the strongest terms. No one should ever have to endure the pain, humiliation, and long-term suffering they cause, and no one should have to doubt the grave consequences that await a perpetrator of sexual abuse or cover-up. With this reporting system, bishops hold themselves accountable for living with integrity and handling reports of sexual abuse in accordance with Church and civil law.
At all times, they sympathize with the victim-survivors. They deeply regret what bishops, priests, deacons, religious, and laity have inflicted on the victim-survivors, as well as its effects. The Bishops of Canada wish to reach out and accompany victims and survivors on the path that restores justice and promotes healing.
About the Canadian System for Reporting Sexual Abuse or Covered Up by a Catholic Bishop
The Canadian Catholic Bishop Sexual Abuse and Cover-Up Reporting System is sponsored and funded by the Bishops of Canada. It operates on a confidential and secure platform, ClearView Connects TM, designed by ClearView Strategic Partners. Individuals can access the reporting system online ( SystemedeSignalementEpiscopal.ca ) or through a toll-free number (1-866-892-3737) from anywhere in Canada, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days per year, in English or French.
To learn more about the Canadian System for Reporting Sexual Abuse or Covered by a Catholic Bishop, please visit https://www.cccb.ca/en/about/ministere-responsable/comment-signaler-un-abus/ .
