Vatican taken to task over child protection record

Committee aims to find out whether the UN Convention Against Torture was violated

NEW YORK— A second UN committee plans to question Vatican officials on failures to stop clergy sex abuse.

The hearing, scheduled for May 5-6 in Geneva, will look at whether the Vatican’s record on child protection violates the UN Convention Against Torture. The Holy See ratified the treaty in 2002. Vatican spokesmen said Monday they could not immediately comment.

Last January, Vatican officials testified for eight hours before an obscure human rights committee on the scale of clergy sex abuse globally.

The Vatican was compelled to appear as a signatory to the UN Convention for the Rights of the Child, which requires governments to take all adequate measures to protect children from harm. The Holy See was one of the first states to ratify the treaty in 1990.

The UN committee issued a scathing report, accusing Vatican officials of systematically placing their own interests over those of victims. The Vatican condemned the findings as a reflection of “prejudiced” positions of anti-Catholic advocacy groups.

The Center for Constitutional Rights, a non-profit legal group based in New York, submitted reports on behalf of victims to both committees urging closer UN scrutiny of the church record on child abuse. For the upcoming hearing before the UN Committee Against Torture, the centre argued the rape of children by clergy amounted to torture and inhuman treatment, and the Vatican hasn’t done enough to stop the abuse.

Last Friday, Pope Francis said he took personal responsibility for the “evil” of clergy sex abuse. He sought forgiveness from victims and said the church must be even bolder in efforts to protect children.