Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/571192
4 maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 16 SEptEmbEr 2015 News Clerical sex abuse victims tell court of meagre assistance from Curia Eleven victims filed a Constitutional case, protesting that their case of sex abuse at the hands of the clergy was being decided by someone close to a Church institution • Radju maria founder Fr Charles Fenech in contempt of court after not testiyfing on connection between radio station and mr Justice micallef Matthew agius A handful of meetings with a psy- chologist, psychiatrist and social worker was the sum total of the as- sistance given by the Curia to vic- tims of clerical sex abuse, a court has heard. Mr Justice Mark Chetcuti began hearing testimony by the plaintiffs in the Constitutional case filed by 11 victims of clerical sex abuse this May, after Mr Justice Joseph R. Mi- callef, who also occupies the role of president of the Malta Radio Maria Association, had turned down their request that he abstain from deciding the claim. Lawyer Franco Vassallo submit- ted a Radju Marija newsletter re- porting on a talk which Mr Justice Micallef had delivered to its sup- porters, in support of the allega- tion of bias. Vassallo told the court that Mi- callef was far too close to the insti- tution that had abused his clients. Pressing the point of the impact the abuse has had on the victims, Vassallo told the court that some of the victims had suffered such severe psychological damage, that he would not be summoning them to testify, as this risked causing further harm. One victim who did testify was Lawrence Grech, who told the court how he was brought up at St Joseph Home. "We were brought up by an in- stitution run by the church. They were our parents," said Grech. He told the court that the victims had approached the church response team, after which he had spoken to the superior at St Joseph. "Archbishop Charles Scicluna [then lead investigator in the Church's probe into the abuse cas- es] had phoned me on my mobile," recalled Grech. "He told me not to worry, that he was ready to help me and advised us to seek compensa- tion from the church. He also apol- ogised on behalf of the church." The victims had met with the archbishop of the time, Paul Cre- mona, OP, and pro-vicar Anton Gouder, who had apologised on behalf of the church. Grech was unimpressed with the outcome of his meeting with the Pope. "A lot of emotions and the- atrics" was how he described the meeting, claiming that nothing changed afterwards. The Curia's investigation was concluded and sent to the Vatican within two weeks of Scicluna's be- coming Archbishop. Scicluna had offered to help, and Grech said that after Scicluna's appointment as Archbishop, he had challenged him on live TV to make good his offer. "We heard nothing since," he said. The sum total of the help he had received from the Curia after the abuse was a one-hour visit to a psy- chiatrist. "I had gone to Radio Marija knocking at the door asking for the help which we had been promised... the psychiatrist spoke to me for an hour. That was the help I received," claimed Grech, although he later added that it had also arranged for him to meet with a psychologist and social worker. Another abuse victim, Philip Cauchi, testified that he had been listening to Radju Maria, when he heard Fr Anton Gouder claim that abused children were being helped. "I phoned the programme live on air and identified myself. I asked him how he was helping us because nobody from the church had con- tacted us. Gouder said the church had made an offer to help. I went to the Curia the day after and met him. He gave me an appointment with the psychological assistance team..." said the witness, trailing off before breaking down in tears. "I did not want to file criminal charges. They had done me both good and harm and thought I could seek help from the church." He had met the team again, three months later, and at the third meeting, he was given medication. "I showed the prescription to my doctor and he advised me not to take them." "I don't know Mr Justice Micallef. How can he help me if he is in- volved with the church? Who de- cided that our case be heard by the president of Radju Maria?" asked Cauchi. Radju Maria founder and direc- tor Fr Charles Fenech, OP, had also been summoned to testify regard- ing the connection between the ra- dio station and Mr Justice Micallef yesterday, but the Dominican priest did not turn up. The court declared Fenech in contempt of court, fined him €150 and ordered he be escorted to the next sitting, on 24 September. Fenech is facing separate charges of sexual abuse and late last year the Curia denied that former Arch- bishop Paul Cremona offered mon- ey to a woman who claims to have been violently sexually abused by Fenech, a former provincial of the Dominican order. NOTICE REVISION OF THE GENERAL ELECTION ELECTORAL REGISTER The Chief Electoral Commissioner notifies that the closing date for the publication of the forthcoming revision of the General Election Electoral Register due in October is 30th September, 2015. All Maltese nationals aged 18 or over whose name does not appear in the Electoral Register published in April, 2015, and who have not since applied for registration as voters, should do so provided they have the necessary qualifications. Application forms are obtainable from Police Stations, Local Councils' Offices, the e-ID Card Management Office and from the Electoral Office. They may also be downloaded from the website - www.electoral.gov.mt It is in the interest of voters to verify that their personal particulars as shown in the April 2015 Register are correct. They should also verify that the house number or name, the street name as well as the I.D. card number are shown correctly in the Register. Registered voters should notify the Electoral Office of any changes/corrections that are necessary. Those persons wishing to apply for registration as voters or for a change/correction of surname and/or address in the Electoral Register, should do so by applying concurrently for their e-ID Card at Gattard House, National Road, Blata l-Bajda. The e-ID Card Office is open from Monday to Friday, between 7.30 a.m. and 2.00 p.m., Wednesday, from 3.00 p.m. to 6.00 p.m., and Saturday, from 7.30 a.m. to 11.00 a.m. The same facilities are given at the Identity Card Office, 28A, St Francis Square, Rabat, Gozo. All applications may be delivered at the: Office of the Electoral Commission, Evans Building, Merchants Street, Valletta, at 28A, St. Francis Square, Rabat, Gozo, OR to any Police Officer in any Police Station in Malta and Gozo, OR forwarded to the Chief Electoral Commissioner by post, TO BE RECEIVED BY NOT LATER THAN 30th SEPTEMBER, 2015. www.electoral.gov.mt Carmelite priory garden one of last open spaces in urbanised area Continued froM page 1 The pro- posed development is also being opposed by residents who are con- cerned about the impact it would have on traffic, in what is already one of the busiest roads in the Slie- ma/St Julian's area. A petition opposing this develop- ment has already collected hundreds of signatures. Residents and the Archbishop are opposing the development of what is one of the few remaining open spaces within an urban conserva- tion area. If approved, the project would abut the scheduled Carmelite con- vent and the adjoining Carmelite parish Church, which is a protected building, scheduled as Grade 1 – the highest degree of protection MEPA has. Fr Charles Fenech (centre) failed to show up in court Archbishop Charles Scicluna