French paper re-publishes Mohammed cartoons

where can I see the cartoons? I would like to see for myself as to the nature of the illustrations.

I too want to see them. And post them all over out of scorn for religious nuts.

I wonder if those people wrote above and the others thinking the same way, would be tolerable like this to the ugly cartoons of jesus, virgin mary and the saints. What if some body says that virgin mary was a hore and jesus was the child of a farmer. Who can believe that a woman give a birth to a child without a father anyway.
These christian people has to think about themselves first.

There are regularly comments and cartoons which depict jesus and the virgin marry in a derogatory fahion, however christians dont surround embassies with guns. I dont think Muslims should get so wound up by a few cartoons, they really shouldn't care what non-muslim people think or say about their religon, they should be proud of their beliefs and complain through normal diplomatic channels, not with guns ever

the islamic community needs to understand that they have no right to try and muzzle free speech. it is time the christian community stood up and said enough is enough to their violence.

It is shameful that in industrial democratic country, such an invasion against religious beliefes has been done. This is not the freedom of speech. It is just an action for creating hostility against islam and Muslims. There are many more important things that should be deal with like poverty, ethics and so on. Why they do not use their freedom for criticising such matters?

I can't believe we are letting religeous fanatics run our lives! Oh yeah, I forgot about Bush. Well at least he's a Christian religeous fanatic.

The world has to learn that they cannot live on beliefs anymore. Beliefs is a time bomb waiting to explode within the Human race. Man stole knowledge from the GODs, and Man's knowledge will reign over beliefs.
There is a major flaw or loophole in the religions of the world. No matter how you look at it and try to explain it, the religions of the world allows one to sin or commit crime openly and be forgiven or rewarded. The world cannot live on beliefs anymore. Its been 2000 years. How long more do you want to wait for your GOD. If there is a GOD, there must be a devil. If there is no GOD, there is no devil. There is only Man's intellectual, knowledge, morals and rule of law.

All these religions of the Abrahamic faiths either idiotic if not foolish for fighting over beliefs! Look at China and India the ancient world of 2 great civilisations have not gone to war with one another until these Middle-Eastern faiths spread to this region. China, never they had a single holy war fought in the name of religions that had set foot in China for 2,500 yrs. Until Christianity and Islam emerged. If there is Creator God, it could be exactly the the image of our ancestor before he evolve to homo sapien.

Apparently, people who believe in God are constantly not at Peace but at war! Look at China and India; never had they gone to wars in the names of their native religions for more than 2,500 yrs! But when Islam and Christianity spread to these regions, religions are no longer peace belief.

Go read historical facts of Buddhist/ Hindu monuments in India and other parts of the world. Where was the oldest university in the world? Plundered by Muslim invaders in India, Nalanda. Where was the tallest Buddha image in the world? In Afghanistan but gone… Where is the largest Buddhist monument in the world? Indonesia, Jogjakarta but was bombed and restored. Where was the largest collection of Buddhist images? Pakistan and plunder / sold…

Look at what "Moderate Muslim" said and imagine what an immoderate mohammedan will do !!!

The Muslim said or rather shouted, "WHY DO YOU LIKE TO TALK BADLY ABOUT THE OTHER'S BELIEVES??????????????????????????????"

Well I know of many comedians that poke fun at religion and no one is threatening to kill them orburn their homes down. Even on the Australian Christian Channel they have stand up comics telling jokes about religion.

World Famous comic Billy Connelly made his fortune on the back of a piece he did on Jesus and his cruxifiction. An example of Billy's take on the cruxifiction is that Jesus was stabbed with a spear while nailed hand and foot to the cross because Jesus was trying to thump a guard but couldn't get his feet or hands or feet free, So Jesus urinated on the guard. That's funny and I'm going to laugh.

Many of other Christians would laugh at such a joke because Christians they know that religion is not about keeping images of a bloke (The bible says not to keep images or objects to pray to) on a cross scared but religion is in the heart. Religion is spritual.

Or how about the park ranger seen to give himself the sign of the cross and a little girl goes up to him and asks, "Mr Park Ranger are you praying?"
The Ranger replies, "No I was telling that tall bum and his short mate to get off the grass"

Should I expect a riot to erupt out the front of my home now, to receive death threats. I know that won't happen.

I'd like to see the cartoon myself. They sound pretty hilarious to me. What the hubbub all about? Bring 'em on.

You can view the cartoons here.
http://face-of-muhammed.blogspot.com/

Reading on the comments posted here..really doesn't surprise me. You will obviously find each side of the story, some very extreme (like that china issue...which is irrelevant to the topic discussed) and then others...threatening to kill.

The scariest part of this whole thing is that muslims are misunderstood and are probably the most misunderstood religion out there in todays times. Is it just a coincidence that islam is one of the top religions? I think that this is a battle that will continue for then next 1000 centuries (or until judgement day) Its all about the battle of which religion is correct...well...lets just leave that as a personal preference.

My reponse to this stupid cartoon is...yes there is freedom of speech that is a right granted to each person. But before we get into that let me explain the actions of my brothers and sisters...as mentioned islam is the most misunderstood religion because a**holes like Bush are in charge and lets just say his motto is to eat on a full stomach. He thrives for oil and that is all his focus is on..whether ruining the image of a religion is at play or not. As he admitted himself "Americans are addicted to oil."

Now, there have been occurances from the day Bush has been in charge against muslims..and these occurances have filled up into a bucket...now after this inconsiderate cartoon...this bucket has been overflowed. Now, the threats coming from my brothers and sisters stem out of frustration, fear, and alot of anger.

I think the French journalist should of just taken a second to think that every day (5 times a day) BILLIONS of people pray in the name of the prophet...and to criticize people's beleifs/values is basically calling on another battle. Yes, i do agree that each person should be granted the right to freedom of speech...but to laugh on what people live for is unhumanitarian.

saygısızlık işiniz adilik kendinize olmayan saygınızın ve inançsızlığın sonucunu yansıtıyorsunuz yazık sizin gibilere

The fact that according to Islamic religion the depiction of Mohamed in painting or drawing is sinful and derogatory is not something that a secular, Independent newspaper needs to take into account. If Muslims feel its wrong to draw pictures of their prophet no one is forcing them to do so. But they cannot force their religion upon others. Judaism regards any attempt at drawing a painting of god deeply sinful but do they try to restrict the rest of the world from doing so? Although Islam has adopted the historical figure of Mohamed as a religious figure and has chosen to worship him as their prophet it does not mean that Islam now has a monopoly over him. He was a human before he became a prophet who actually lived on this planet. He is part of the human history and the bare fact that Muslims believe in him will not stop me from making use of his figure and his life’s story in any way I see fit. Mohamed’s legacy belongs to humanity just as any other piece of our history. Our depiction of his figure does not mean that we do not respect Islam; it only means that we are not Muslim.

Where does the idea for cartoons and caricatures derive from? It derives from an effort to criticize a certain idea or opinion through the use of drawing rather than words. It is a practice that has been around for hundreds of years if not more and has always been regarded as a harsher form of critical expression than words wove into a sentence for no real reason other than human natural subjectivity and the fact that the pictures can be seen and understood universally while an article requires the understanding of the language and the patience to sit and read it. However, this does not change the fact that words can and usually are the harsher form of criticism. More so in this case, there are countless books, articles, academic studies- and what not- whose criticism towards Islam or the Arab culture is by far more slandering and humiliating than those poor cartoons. Is the expression of criticism towards Islam wrong by itself? Is criticism towards any religion wrong? I think not. All religions are an attempt at explaining life and the universe. Any religion is a theory about the origin of the universe, about life and the reason for it. I don’t understand why people insist on trying to make religion into something sacred, holy, and untouchable even when they don’t believe in it themselves. When a professor describes a scientific theory that he believes to be correct do we cringe from expressing disagreement? From criticizing? Religion is no different and should not be treated differently. If I disagree I will criticize and make known my disagreement in all forms at my disposal including, writing, verbal expression and the drawing of cartoons.

After spending few minutes checking out your website, I realized how match you hate Islam. Regardless if you are Jewish or Christian, we may understand your hatrand to Islam and Muslims, but this doesn't explain why you hate the prophet Mohammad (PBUOH). This great man existed a long time ago, he was a great man, he changed the lives of billions of people on a peaceful way; although some Muslims committed some crimes, prophet Mohammad (PBUOM) is not responsible for their sins and crimes, because this is not his way. You (you and those who published those cartoons) have no right to insult our religion, and offense us; further more if you think that you people are well educated, or you believe if freedom of speech, this doesn't give you the Wright to offend people, and affront of religious believe. How do you expect to spread love and peace, when you show this kind of feeling. At least we Muslim respect Jesus and Moiz, we never offend people. Finally, do you feel happy when you offend Muslims? is this make you feel better?
Take a moment and read about the life of prophet Mohammed (PBUOH).

"At least we Muslim respect Jesus and Moiz, we never offend people. Finally, do you feel happy when you offend Muslims? is this make you feel better?"

But can you really say that with certain about the Muslims as a whole. Do they never critize Catholicism or the Pope or Buddism or Hinduism? How many jokes are there about 6-legged elephant Gods. Was there a large uprising when Homer first made fun of the elephant God on The Simpsons? No. They realized that things can be said in good humor with no insult intended.

After the 9/11 attacks Muslims declared the start of a Holy war. When the US declared a war on terrorism did they mention Muslims? No.

Free speech is one thing, but not when it portrays hate

as a christian, i do not enjoy seeing derogatory images of christian figures, BUT i ignore them because i strongly believe in freedom of speech and freedom of choice. What offends one person does not offend another. Poking fun at religious figures is completely acceptable. There are often cartoons about popes, jewish figures, atheists, etc...I personally don't know of any embassies being burned down or boycotts done when that happened. Everyone can believe whatever they want, but Islam should not try to muzzle the right to free speech. Also, responding violently does not disprove the cartoons. The riots and violence are proving the cartoons right. If Islam is about peace, shouldn't all responses be peaceful?

Cases Settled Out-Of-Court

Following are some of the cases of sex offences committed by clergy/church officials and organisations that were settled out-of-court in Australia in the 1990s.

Barbara Smith received a near-record amount in a compensation settlement, in January 2000, from a Franciscan order for incidents involving sexual abuse perpetrated on her by two of their priests in 1982 and a separate compensation from the Melbourne archdiocese for sexual abuse by another priest in 1973. Although the terms of the settlement are subject to a confidentiality agreement, it is believed Smith received a total of more than $200,000. Smith said she was relieved her fight for justice was over but still felt bitter about her treatment, adding that she first brought her sexual abuse complaint to the attention of former Archbishop Frank Little in 1975.

The Sisters of Mercy and the Catholic Church negotiated an out-of-court settlement, in 1998, with more than 60 former resident of the Neerkol orphanage between 1924 and 1971, who claimed they were abused and imprisoned as children. In October 1997, the Sisters of Mercy apologised "unreservedly" to former residents who were "victims of physical, psychological, emotional and spiritual abuse". The settlement ended one of the largest litigation cases in Queensland history.

In 1996, Christian Brothers in Western Australia agreed to pay out $3.5 million to more than 260 men claiming they were sexually abused in boarding schools and orphanages run by the Catholic order, dating as far back as the 1930s. The out-of-court settlement is the final chapter in a three year court battle by the men, in a case that was fought in the NSW and Victorian supreme courts. Former students will be paid at least $2,000 each, with higher payments of up to $25,000 for those who can show long-term trauma. The Christian Brothers will also pay a further $1.5 million in legal costs incurred by the ex-residents.

Clergy/Church Officials Convicted After Pleading Guilty

Following are some of the cases of clergy/church officials who pleaded guilty to sex offences in Australia in the 1990s. There can be no doubt as to their guilt but some sentence conditions may have changed due to legal appeals.

In March 2000, Catholic priest, Terrence Thomas Keliher, pleaded guilty to two counts of indecent dealing with a girl under 12 years, occurring between January 1 and June 4, 1977. In sentencing Keliher to two-and-a-half years jail, Judge Brian Hoath said he accepted Keliher was remorseful but the acts he committed on the then 9-year-old victim were "particularly revolting" and done while Keliher was in a position of great trust.

In 1999, Catholic priest, Father Raymond Deal, a former secretary to retired Melbourne Archbishop Frank Little, pleaded guilty in the Broadmeadows Magistrates Court to three charges of indecent assault against an emotionally impaired 26-year-old man at his Corpus Christi parish in Glenroy between December 1998 and March 1999. The victim was a parishioner who had been placed in Deal’s care to serve out a community service order imposed for minor past offences. During Deal’s sentencing, magistrate, Mr Paul Grant, described the offences committed as "a betrayal of your position as a priest and a betrayal of the trust placed in you of your supervision of this man," adding, "The offences must be regarded as serious breaches of the law..." Deal was sentenced to a two year good behaviour bond for the first two offences and a four-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, for the third offence.

Former Roman Catholic parish priest, Wilfred James Baker, pleaded guilty in 1999 to 15 charges of indecent assault involving seven boys and one count of gross indecency involving another boy. The child sex offences spanned almost 20 years, beginning in 1960, and the victims were all aged between 10 and 12 years at the time of the offences. Baker was a curate then parish priest at a number of suburban parishes including Gladstone Park, Eltham and Brighton East and was described by former parishioners as an enthusiastic priest who revitalised parishes at Eltham and Gladstone Park. Baker was sentenced to four years jail for the child sex offences.

A member of the Salvation Army, Phillip Martin Lawrence Briscoe, of Valley View in SA, pleaded guilty, in 1999, to possessing child pornography after photos were discovered of two young girls under his care as foster children. Briscoe claimed the photos were taken of the naked, young girls as a form of art. Though none were explicit, Judge Sulan said the photographs were "mildly seductive" and that Briscoe "showed little sensitivity to the girls in taking and retaining the photographs". Briscoe was fined $1,200.

In 1999, former Anglican archdeacon, Louis Victor Daniels, formerly of St George’s Rectory, Burnie, admitted to four counts of indecent assault and two of oral sexual intercourse, involving a 14-year-old boy, related to two incidents between January 1, 1992 and April 10, 1992. More sex offence charges, arising from about 10 more incidents in 1994, that had been lodged against Daniels, were later dropped because the prosecutor was unable to give specific dates for the offences.

Former Christian Brother, John Joseph Jordan, was given a 12-month good behaviour bond after pleading guilty, in 1999, to one count of indecent assault on a male under 16 years of age. Jordan, from Valley View in SA, had engaged in mutual masturbation with a 13-year-old boy at a Geelong orphanage in the early 1960s then left the order soon after the offence, which came to light in 1997 after Jordan volunteered the information to police.

Catholic priest Patrick Joseph Cleary, formerly the priest of the inner western Brisbane parish of Ashgrove, pleaded guilty, in 1998, to three counts of indecent dealing between 1967 and 1973. He molested a 15-year-old boy whose mother had just died, while the boy was in the confessional at a church in Wavell Heights. A second attack occurred after Cleary contacted the boy’s father, telling him to send the teenager in for religious education. A second victim, who was 16 at the time, was molested after Cleary took him to a park to look for his lost bike.

John Gerard Patrick Sweeney, a former parish priest of Our Lady Queen of Peace at Greystanes and the founder and former superior general of the now-disbanded order of religious teaching brothers, the Society of St Gerard Majella, pleaded guilty in 1998 to committing an act of indecency against former trainee brothers over an 11 year period. Sweeney, who also helped administer the former Newman Catholic High School, was one of the order’s three ordained priests who have each been jailed in relation to sexual assaults of young men considering a religious life with the order. Two others are serving jail terms for offences involving novices and postulants. Sweeney had also been convicted by a jury in May 1997, of three counts of indecent assault and was jailed for 18 months in relation to those offences.

Brian Robert Gordon, former Queensland Catholic Education administrator, was sentenced to a minimum of 12 months jail for child-sex offences committed while he taught at a Sydney school. Gordon pleaded guilty in 1998 to six charges and was found guilty on a further two charges of indecently assaulting four 11-year-old boys at St Mary’s primary school in Dundas between 1970 and 1972. Gordon had confessed his indiscretions in 1971 to the Provincial of the Marist Brothers but was told to put it behind him. He went on to teach at a number of schools until he was arrested on charges of indecent assault in 1996. Gordon said that he was ashamed about what he had done to the boys, although he had never gone to confession about it. He is no longer a practising Catholic.

Former De La Salle Brother, Frank Keating, who was known as Brother Ibar, pleaded guilty in 1998 to 21 charges of indecently assaulting 12 Melbourne boys, between 1972 and 1978, and was jailed for eight months. The court hearing was told that Keating had joined the order at a very young age and was described as "sexually naive". Keating, who was stood down from the Melbourne school after complaints of sexual abuse, had received specialist medical advice and ongoing medical support. He was later posted to the De La Salle College in Redcliffe as sports master in 1981 and then appointed school principal in 1989 but, two years later, he was stood down when "a further compliant was received". Keating was sentenced to three years jail, with 28 months suspended.

Former Catholic primary school teacher, Andrew Langley Graham, pleaded guilty in 1998 to one charge of indecent assault between 1979 and 1980, four charges of indecent assault in 1983 and one charge of having sexual intercourse without consent in 1983. All the offences occurred at Camden and involved Graham masturbating the boy, who was 10 when the first offence was committed. During sentencing, Judge Helen Morgan said, "This matter cannot be treated as isolated offences. They constituted a course of conduct over a long period," adding that the victim estimated Graham had molested him at least 30 time. Graham was jailed for 12 months.

In 1997, a Church elder pleaded guilty to unlawful carnal knowledge and to maintaining a sexual relationship with his 15-year-old sister-in-law and was jailed for four years with a recommendation for parole after 16 months.

Former Catholic priest and second in charge of the religious order the Society of St Gerard Majella, Peter Harold Pritchard (also known as Joseph Pritchard) pleaded guilty in 1997 to a charge of buggery, one of assault with intent to commit buggery and two counts of committing acts of indecency, committed against four teenagers. Pritchard also had four charges of acts of indecency, that occurred at HMAS Nirimba at Quakers Hill -- where Pritchard was the Catholic chaplain, taken into account by the judge during sentencing. Pritchard received a six year jail sentence.

Former principal of a Marist Brothers college, Gregory Vincent Coffey, pleaded guilty in 1997 to six counts of indecent assault against two students that occurred in 1976 and 1977 at Immaculate Heart Marist Brothers College where he taught. Coffey was sentenced to a jail term of two-and-a-half-years, wholly suspended for two-and-a-half-years. Coffey was also ordered to pay his victims compensation of $7,500 each, in monthly installments of $500.

Catholic priest, Leo Daniel Wright, pleaded guilty in 1995 to nine counts of indecently dealing with a girl under 12, four counts of indecently dealing with her sister when under 16 and three counts of gross indecency with a boy under 16. The offences against the children occurred between 1968 and 1970. Wright also pleaded guilty to one count of indecently assaulting an 18-year-old woman in 1977. Wright was sentenced to three years jail. Two years later, in 1997, Wright pleaded guilty to four counts each of indecent treatment and indecent assault between 1971 and 1976 and was sentenced to a further 18 months, suspended after six months.

Catholic priest, Father Gerard Vincent Ryan, who worked in the Maitland-Newcastle dioceses, pleaded guilty in 1996 to 11 charges, six of indecently assaulting four boys and five of homosexual intercourse with another boy. He also asked Judge Rummery, in the District Court, to consider, on sentencing, eight more offences. Ryan was given a four year jail sentence. A year later, in 1997, Ryan returned to court to face a further 14 sex offences against boys aged 6-14. Sentenced again, this time in the Cooma District Court, Ryan had another 39 charges taken into account and was received an 11 year jail sentence, to commence in May 2000, after the sentence he was already serving had expired.

Mark Geoffrey Fisher, a former scoutmaster and Anglican church choirmaster, pleaded guilty, in 1997, to charges of 35 sex offences involving eight boys aged between 11 and 15, that occurred over a 17 year period up to 1988. Fisher, who was scoutmaster at the 1st Hunters Hill troop between 1969 and 1988 and choirmaster at several Anglican churches, told the Parramatta District Court he was sorry for his actions. "I’m truly ashamed and I hope they are in a position to forgive me," said Fisher.

Marist Brother John Dyson, a former principal of the Catholic High School at Alice Springs, pleaded guilty in 1997 to four counts of indecent assault against two boys in a Catholic college in Victoria in 1983. Dyson admitted masturbating the boys up to five times a week while he was a teacher and dormitory master at Assumption College at Kilmore, Victoria.

Retired Salvation Army major, Charles Alan Smith, pleaded guilty, in 1997, in Perth District Court to 39 charges, including indecent dealing with a child under 14, carnal knowledge against the order of nature, gross indecency and indecent assault, committed against nine boys aged between 10 and 17 over a 15 year period. Many of the offences were committed in the 1960s and 1970s. Smith had earlier pleaded guilty to 76 offences against 20 boys in Perth from 1958 to 1977. During sentencing, Chief Judge Kevin Hammond described Smith as a dominant man and a true paedophile who had preyed on young boys and used them as sexual plaything, sentencing him to 15 years jail.

Catholic priest, Desmond Laurence Gannon, pleaded guilty in Melbourne Magistrates Court in 1997 to indecently assaulting three boys, one as young as 12, between January 1960 and March 1969. Gannon had already served a 12 month jail term at prisons in Sale and Ararat for child-sex offences to which he pleaded guilty at Prahran Magistrates Court in 1995. Gannon was sentenced to 12 months in jail, suspended for two years.

Former Anglican minister, Frank Dennis Martin Bazely, of Belhus, pleaded guilty in 1997 to four counts of unlawful and indecent dealings with boys under the age of 14, three counts of unlawful and indecent assaults on a male, two of unlawful and indecent assaults on a female and three of carnal knowledge on a male. The crimes took place between 1969 and 1975 and involved three children -- two brothers and their sister, aged six to 16. Bazely was jailed for a maximum term of five years.

Former Christian Brother, Stephen Francis Farrell, pleaded guilty in 1997 to nine counts of indecently assaulting two brothers aged nine and 10, at the St Alipius Christian Brothers primary school in Ballarat in the early to mid-1970s. During sentencing, Magistrate Ian von Einem described the abuse as "repulsive and outrageous" and that it had a lasting impact on the victims. Farrell was given a two year jail sentence, suspended for two years.

Anglican youth group organiser and former Bunbury scout leader, Frederick Charles Underwood, pleaded guilty in 1997 to 79 counts of indecent dealings, 10 counts of gross indecency, one of procuring indecent dealings, one of inciting indecent dealings and another of attempted carnal knowledge. Underwood had originally been charged with 500 sex offences involving more than 25 young boys between 1971 and 1991. Some of his victims later committed suicide and at least one went on to abuse a six-year-old girl repeatedly over a two year period. Underwood was sentenced to a jail term of 12 years.

Church youth leader, Darryl Lindsay Mowday, pleaded guilty in Brisbane District Court in 1996 to eight charges of indecent dealing and carnal knowledge with a 13-year-old girl, between 1992 and 1994. Mowday, who admitted having sex with the girl in parks, in his car and at his home when his wife was away, was sentenced to seven years’ jail.

Father Ron John McKeirnan, the former Queensland Catholic Education deputy-director, was jailed for three years - suspended after 12 months - for child sex offences. McKeirnan, of Coorparoo in Brisbane, pleaded guilty, in 1996, to 15 counts of indecent assault and indecent dealing with boys aged 12 to 16 between 1964 and 1965 and again between 1975 and 1977.

A former Marist Brother, identified only as "AB", pleaded guilty in 1996 to 67 charges against 15 children aged between nine and 11, from his year 5 classes at Mosman Marist Primary School in 1976 and 1977, at Eastwood Marist primary in 1978-79, St Thomas Moore in 1984-85 and St Carthages, Lismore, in 1986-87. AB admitted masturbating the boys, digitally penetrating the girls, forcing many of the children to masturbate him, some of the boys to masturbate each other and some of the girls to kiss him. AB also performed oral sex on one of the girls -- on the kitchen table of her family home. After being arrested in the US, where he had fled just days after two of his victims complained to police, AB was extradited back to Australia to stand trial and later sentenced to 18 years’ jail. During sentencing in the Sydney District Court, Judge David Freeman said that AB had unrelentingly singled out innocent children, regardless of their sex or circumstances, to satisfy his sexual gratification, describing him as an "evil" man whose crimes had left deep scars not only on the children he abused but also on their peers, families and friends.

Former Marist brother, Peter Richard Spratt, pleaded guilty in 1996 to two acts of indecency against a 14-year-old boy from the Marist College where Spratt worked. The incidents occurred at Carinya Holiday Centre, Jindabyne, and at a Marist Brothers’ residence at Wategoes Beach, Byron Bay, in 1979. After taking into account Spratt’s remorse, co-operation with police and clean record, Cooma Local Court Magistrate Jill MacDonald placed him on a $2,000, two year good-behaviour bond. The victim’s stepfather called the sentence "really ridiculous...when you consider what it’s done to our son, it’s hard to quantify".

Former Christian Brother, William Edwin Marchant, from the Bidyadanga Aboriginal community at La Grange (150 km south of Broome in WA), was charged with four counts of gross indecency with a 12-year-old boy at Tardun Boys Home in 1967 and 1968. Marchant pleaded guilty to one count in 1997 and was sentenced.

In 1996, Catholic priest, Father John Leslie Treacy, pleaded guilty to indecently assaulting a 16-year-old in January 1988 and was placed on a $750 bond but no conviction recorded in May 1993. After the court hearing, Treacy was sent on leave while receiving psychiatric help then transferred from the Sandhurst Diocese to the Queensland town of Dalby, where he worked as an assistant priest.

Keith John Burton, an associate pastor at a Protestant church in North Brisbane, pleaded guilty in 1996 to one count of maintaining a sexual relationship with a minor, five counts of indecent treatment of a boy under the age of 16 and one count of having permitted himself to be sodomised. He was sentenced to seven years, the victims were aged 14 and 12 when the incidents occurred from 1985 to 1989.

A member of the Christian Brothers order, code-named X11, told the Wood royal commission in 1996 that he sexually molested 20 boys, aged as young as five, over a 28 year period. X11 admitted he preyed on disadvantaged boys under his care and that he told his superiors of some of the assaults as early as 1987 but the Christian Brothers did not tell police and allowed X11 to remain in the order. X11, who taught extensively throughout NSW since joining the order in 1961, was interviewed by police a year later, after a complaint was made by one of his victims, code-named X17.

Christian Brother, Edward Vernon Dowlan, pleaded guilty in 1996 to 16 counts of indecently assaulting 11 male students under the age of 16 between March 1971 and July 1982. Two counts were committed while Dowlan was teaching at St Alipius Primary School, four counts were committed at St Thomas’ College, seven at St Patrick’s College and three at Cathedral College. Originally sentenced to nine years and eight months’ jail, Dowlan had his sentence reduced, by the Court of Appeal in 1997, to six-and-a-half years.

Canberra Anglican priest John Phillip Aitchison pleaded guilty in 1996 to charges of sexual intercourse with a young boy and was sentenced in the Queanbeyan District Court to three years jail. Aitchison was already serving a three year sentence after being found guilty in the ACT Magistrates Court of three acts of indecency against the same boy when he was nine, 10 and 12 years old. Numerous other charges had been laid in NSW for incidences involving Aitchison abusing the boy in that state. The charges involved fondling and the victim also told the court that Aitchison would clothe him in nappies and rub talcum powder on his body.

Former principal of a Victorian Catholic school, James Richard Gunn, pleaded guilty in 1995 to five charges of indecent assault and six of taking part in acts of sexual penetration with a boy over 10 but under 16, committed between 1987 and 1989. Gunn was sentenced to three years jail.

Catholic priest, Father Gerard Joseph Mulvale, who was previously found guilty of three counts of indecent assault of one 15-year-old boy, pleaded guilty in 1995 to one count each of indecent assault and gross indecency in relation to another male victim of a similar age. Mulvale was also acquitted of two counts of indecent assault on the first victim. The offences occurred between 1977 and 1981, both before and after Mulvale became a catholic priest of the Pallottine Order in 1979. Both victims were members of church youth groups at St Christopher’s parish in Syndal, of which Mulvale was a leader. Mulvale was sentenced to three years jail.

Melbourne priest, Father John Kevin O’Donnell, pleaded guilty to 12 counts of indecent assault on 10 boys and two girls under the age of 16 between 1946 and 1977. During sentencing, Judge Kellam told O’Donnell he had committed an "audacious and rapacious breach of your obligations to these children and their parents as their parish priest’’. The counts of indecent assault occurred in Chelsea, Seymour, Tallarook, Dandenong, Hastings, Rosebud and Oakleigh and all of O’Donnell’s victims were students at schools attached to his parish -- some were altar boys. O’Donnell received a total sentence of 39 months jail in 1995.

Former Marist Brothers Eastwood teacher and trainee priest, Phillip John Hardy, pleaded guilty to 13 counts (and was found guilty on another five counts) of sexual abuse charges committed against a boy from the ages of 8 till 16. In 1995, Hardy was sentenced to a minimum of seven years jail and a maximum of 11 years for his "abhorrent" crimes. During sentencing, NSW District Court Judge Angela Karpin said Hardy "represents every parent’s nightmare, a trusted friend, teacher and religious example who flagrantly abuses that trust... The prisoner is not a monster but over eight years he behaved in a monstrous way."

Marist Brother, David Austin Christian, pleaded guilty in 1995 to eight counts of indecency, against a 10-year-old boy and an 11-year-old boy. The incidences occurred while Christian was the principal of Newman Junior College. He was sentenced in the Perth District Court and his $10,500 fine was paid by the Marist Church.

Catholic priest, Gerald Ridsdale, was jailed for 18 years in 1994, after pleading guilty to 46 charges of sex abuse of 21 children aged between nine and 15, in various towns around Victoria between 1961 and 1982. Ridsdale had earlier been charged with 180 counts including 21 counts of buggery, 102 of indecent assault and 55 of gross indecency. Ridsdale had also been sentenced to jail some 27 years earlier for sexual assault offences committed against eight victims at Inglewood and Edenhope. During sentencing at the County Court, Judge John Dee blamed the Catholic Church superiors for failing to take Ridsdale out of circulation after becoming aware of his criminal conduct, telling Ridsdale, "You were given some perfunctory in-house counselling before being shifted off to continue your criminal conduct in other areas."

In 1994, the former Vicar-General of Parramatta and parish priest of St Marys, Father Richard St John Cattell, pleaded guilty to five counts of indecent assault on a 14-year-old boy who had gone to him to report a sexual assault by another teacher. Cattell told the boy that this sort of experience was "normal" then indecently assaulted him several times during the next three years. Cattell was sentenced in the Penrith District Court to two years’ jail.

Anglican priest, Father Michael Roderick Painter, pleaded guilty in 1994 to sex offences against a 16-year-old boy and faced four further charges of aggravated sexual assault against a 13-year-old boy. Sentenced in the Perth District Court, Painter received three years probation and 240 hours of community work.

Catholic priest, Father Peter Lewis Comensoli, pleaded guilty to assaulting two boys aged 11 and 17, and admitting he used alcohol, pornography and gifts to ingratiate himself to his victims. The former Gwynneville parish priest, was jailed for 18-months in October 1994.

In 1994, a former scout leader and YMCA leader, Robert John Richardson, pleaded guilty and was convicted on 29 counts of indecent assault, four of indecent acts with a child under 16, three each of gross indecency and indecent acts in the presence of a 16-year-old, and two of sexual penetration of a 16-year-old. Richardson was sentenced to 10 years in jail for sexually molesting the boys, who were aged 11 to 16 at the time of the offences. During the case, it was alleged that Richardson molested 12 boys in his charge and that the crimes he committed numbered about 100.

Roderick Albert Joseph Corrie, one of the most senior and highly decorated Scouts in NSW, was jailed for seven years in February 2000 after pleading guilty in the District Court to eight most serious of 77 charges of sexually abusing children as young as 11, including rape and buggery, occurring from 1969 to 1995. Two years earlier, Corrie had been convicted of eight charges of "aggravated indecent assault" and placed on a bond, given counselling and 70 hours of community service. The leader of Australia’s 90,000-strong Scouting movement, Dr Bruce Munro, apologised to the families of those abused after the Sydney Morning Herald obtain a copy of a 14-page report written by a senior Scout leader in 1981 that detailed serious allegations of Corrie abusing four boys, one aged 12 at the time. Munro admitted that those allegations were not properly investigated or referred to the police and that although Corrie was initially suspended, he was then simply allowed to transfer as a leader to a North Shore Scouting group. Even after police began investigating Corrie in 1994, he was allowed to continue having contact with - and sexually abusing -- scouts until at least May 1995. According to chief executive of NSW Scouts, Mr Peter Olah, Corrie was one of seven paedophiles in the ‘movement’ to be convicted during the past 10 years.

Former Christian Brother, Gerard William Dick, pleaded guilty in 1994 to 10 counts of indecent dealing with a boy under 14, more than 30 years earlier. Dick was sentenced to three years jail.

Catholic Brother, John Littler, pleaded guilty in 1993 to three charges of indecent assault in Sydney’s District Court and received a five year good behaviour bond.

Christian Brother Bill Hocking pleaded guilty in 1992 to aggravated indecent assault of 14-year-old boy under his care at a youth refuge and was sentenced to 150 hours of community service.

Clergy/Church Officials Found Guilty By A Jury

Following are some of the cases of clergy/church officials who were found guilty of sex offences in Australia in the 1990s. Some names have been omitted for legal reasons (as legal appeals may be pending).

In February 1999, Catholic priest, Bryan Coffey, was found guilty in the County Court at Ballarat, Victoria, of 12 counts of indecent assault on a male under 16, one count of indecent assault on a girl under 16 and one count of false imprisonment. The charges related to the sexual abuse of seven altar boys and one girl in several parishes in the Western District between 1963 and 1975. He was sentenced to three years jail with the whole term suspended. A later appeal to increase the sentence was brought by the Director of Public Prosecutions, who argued that the current sentence was manifestly inadequate. The appeal was thrown out in a 2-1 majority vote.

Bryce Kingsley Fennell, an active church member, was found guilty of three counts of rape after he invited a 19-year-old intellectually disabled teenager, who had come to his door selling raffle tickets, into his Mount Gambier home and raped him three times on 4 May, 1998. During the sentencing submission, the court heard that Fennell’s criminal history related almost entirely to his "sexual problems" and that most of his victims had been aged 15 years or under. Fennell’s solicitor, Mr Nick Vadasz, told the court his client had very little actual control over his desires and that he was now prepared to be chemically castrated. Fennell appealed against the judgment but the appeal was dismissed on 13 May 1999 and Fennell was subsequently sentenced to 5 years imprisonment.

In 1998, a Catholic priest was sentenced to two years of periodic detention after being found guilty of indecently assaulting an 11-year-old girl in his parish 22 years earlier. The priest’s name was suppressed but the DPP prosecutor, Robyn Denes, told the Campbelltown District Court that "the evidence discloses a systematic abuse of a young child. She was 11 years old when it happened". Denes also said the priest had shown no evidence of contrition or remorse for his actions.

Stephen Joseph Robinson, a former Catholic brother of the Society of St Gerard Majella, was sentenced to a minimum jail term of 18 months after being convicted in 1998 of an act of indecency on a former postulant and a former novice in separate jury trials. Robinson had been the society’s former novice master and spiritual director.

A former Christian Brother’s headmaster was convicted on May 17, 1995 and jailed for 5 years after being found guilty of two counts of gross indecency. The Christian Brother had abused two aboriginal boys, one aged under 14 years, on a remote aboriginal community in NT.

Church elder and Sunday school teacher, Robert Arthur Selby Lowe, was sentenced to life in prison in 1994 for kidnapping and murdering a six-year-old girl. Lowe had been arrested in March 1993 with a written "confession’’ in his possession that admitted he had abducted the girl, but claiming she had died after accidentally choking. Lowe had earlier been convicted of sexual offences in Britain, New Zealand and NSW and been warned for indecent exposure in Croydon in 1991.

Anglican priest, Father John Sydney Morley, was found guilty on two counts of indecent assault in 1992 and was given an 18 month suspended sentence. The charges related to offences committed against an 11-year-old girl and a 14-year-old girl.

Allegations That Lead To Charges Against Clergy/Church Officials

Following are some of the reports of allegations of sex offences made against clergy/church officials in Australia in the 1990s. Some names have been omitted for legal reasons, to protect the identity of those with trials and investigations pending.

In 1999, the Catholic Church’s Commission into Sexual Abuse found that priest, Father Peter Waters sexually abused Michael Santamaria, a nephew of the late B.A. Santamaria, in the 1970s. Independent commissioner Peter O’Callaghan made the finding but Father Waters "vehemently" denied the allegations and formally refused to accept the commission’s jurisdiction. However, Waters was replaced in his parish of Kyneton in 1999. Michael Santamaria said he did not disclose the incidents when his uncle was alive as he was still a force in the church and had befriended the priest involved.

In 1999, a witness from the stolen generations trial told the court how a missionary assaulted him, as a young aboriginal boy living in Northern Territory institutions, when he was bed-ridden with the mumps and alone in his hostel dormitory. The same missionary tried to assault the boy a second time when he next fell ill.

In 1999, former Guildford Grammar dormitory master and Scotch College primary school teacher, Peter Jeremy Longley, of Karnup in WA, was charged with 20 counts of indecent dealings with a child under 14 years of age. The charges, for offences allegedly committed between 1957 and 1984, arose after five complainants had come forward, two were former Guildford Grammar students, two former Scotch College students and another person. Trial has not yet taken place, scheduled for 21 June, 2000.

A senior Catholic clergyman was charged with two counts each of indecent dealing with a boy under 17 and indecent assault. Brisbane Magistrate Peter Mitchell suppressed the name of the clergyman and that of his alleged victim.

Former science and discipline master of a Sydney Catholic primary school, Robert Joseph "Dolly" Dunn is facing trial on numerous charges including homosexual intercourse, acts of indecency, indecent assault, aggravated sexual assault, attempted sexual intercourse, gross indecency, employing a child for pornographic purposes and supplying cannabis, involving 10 boys aged from seven years and upwards, occurring between 1979 and 1995. Dunn’s trial was delayed while his lawyers unsuccessfully argued Dunn should be granted immunity from prosecution because he was granted two indemnities in 1990 so he would help police by giving evidence about three allegedly corrupt former police officers. Although Judge Davidson dismissed the District Court action, as of October 1999, the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions is yet to re-list the case.

In 1998, an Anglican priest faced nine charges of indecent assault on a male for offences that allegedly occurred during 1973 and 1974.

In 1997, a former Christian Brother faced trial over alleged sex offences against a child under 14 years of age at Perth Magistrates Court. The Brother, who was too ill to face court at the time, was charged with nine counts of carnal knowledge and five of indecent dealings with a child under 14, alleged to have taken place in a Perth home between 1955 and 1956.

In 1997, an 80-year-old clergyman and former Neerkol orphanage worker was charged with three counts of rape and 37 counts of indecent dealing for alleged offences committed between 1945 and 1975 at the Sisters of Mercy’s St Joseph’s Orphanage. Charges against the clergyman, who could not be named, included rape of a girl under the age of 14 and indecent dealings with girls under the age of 16 and boys under the age of 14. The brother of one of the girls allegedly raped and abused by the clergyman told the Rockhampton Magistrates Court that he had "spied" on the clergyman and his sister for years, saying, "At the age of 14, I believed [my sister] had been chosen by God for this. I know it sounds ridiculous but that’s how I felt ... you have to understand our up-bringing -- the [clergyman] was almost God." He added that it was not until he was about 18 that he realised the attention given to his sister was morally wrong and that "Not speaking up is something I deeply regret."

In 1997, a Church Pastor, from Reedy Creek in the Gold Coast, was charged with raping a 16-year-old girl. The youth pastor for the Reach Out For Christ International, pleaded not guilty to the charges he faced in Southport District Court.

Two retired priests, from the disbanded western Sydney Catholic order, the Brothers of St Gerard Majella, were charged in 1995 with a range of sexual assault charges after a Sydney major crime squad team investigated allegations of sexual misconduct by the order. One of the priests, a 50-year-old, was charged with 13 counts of assault and committing an act of indecency, two counts of sexual intercourse without consent, three counts of buggery and one of indecent assault for offences allegedly occurring in Sydney between 1982 and 1992. The other priest, a 57-year-old, was charged with four counts of assault and committing acts of indecency, and six counts of indecent assault for offences occurring in Sydney between 1972 and 1985. The order, which had been running retreats for high school students and conducted religious classes in NSW high schools, was disbanded by Bishop Bede Heather shortly after the allegations came to light in late-1994. The names of the priests, both from Nambucca Heads, were suppressed along with the names of their alleged victims. The case was dealt with in the Downing Centre Court in Sydney.

In 1995, a Christian Brother was committed for trial on one count of buggery, allegedly committed on a nine-year-old boy at a school in Melbourne in 1958. The evidence was heard by Magistrate Phillip Goldberg.

Allegations Against Clergy/Church Officials Who Died Before Trial

Following are some of the cases of clergy/church officials who committed suicide or died before being charged with or tried for alleged sex offences in Australia in the 1990s.

Father John O’Regan, former priest at Nazareth House in Brisbane, died before police could interview him over child sex allegations.

In 1997, Peter Bohrsmann, the boarding master of one of Sydney’s most prestigious schools, St Ignatius’ College at Riverview, was found dead in his car, with the engine running, close to the 1300-pupil Jesuit school’s boat shed. Two days earlier, Bohrsmann had professed his innocence when told by Father Christopher Gleeson, headmaster at the college, that an anonymous but detailed complaint had been made against him.

Prominent Wollongong figure and principal of the Edmund Rice College, Brother Michael Evans, killed himself just before Christmas in 1994, after a police investigation had concluded there was enough evidence to charge him with indecent assault. It is alleged that Brother Evans had been abusing boys for years and, since 1984, victims had complained about him to senior figures in the Catholic Church and to the police.

Catholic priest Father Nazareno Fasciale admitted to police that he had cuddled and fondled an 11-year-old altar boy at beach picnics and after mass in the early-1970s. Fasciale had earlier told the church hierarchy that he could not deny allegations he assaulted children in the mid-1950s, the comments leading to his removal from parish work. The 69-year-old Williamstown priest was facing 13 charges of indecent assault and gross indecency when he died of cancer on 13 March 1996.

Charges Dropped Or Convictions Overturned

Following are some of the cases where alleged charges against clergy/church officials were dropped or convictions overturned on appeal in Australia in the 1990s. Some names have been omitted for legal reasons.

Former parish priest, Reginald Basil Durham, was found guilty of raping a 14 year-old-girl who was made a ward of the state to escape sexual abuse from her stepfather that had begun when the girl was eight. The court was told Durham had forced the girl had into a bedroom at the now closed St Joseph’s Orphanage, at Neerkol, and then raped her in 1966. Following the attack, the girl was admitted to hospital for five days, in December 1966, with abdominal pains and fever but records of the treatment had long been destroyed. The girl had complained to a nun at the time but was told no action would be taken because her allegation was "made up". However, she decided to consult police about the alleged rape some thirty years later, leading to Durham’s court case. Judge Warren Howell, in sentencing Durham to a seven-and-a-half year jail term, said the Church had displayed "blinding corruption" and a "reprehensible attitude in trying to cover [the complaint] up." Judge Howell told Durham, who had earlier in 1999 pleaded guilty to six counts of indecent dealing with another child in the 1960s, that he was an "evil man" who had engaged in a "gross and outrageous breach of trust". The judge also suggested the community expected the Church to make a six-figure ex-gratia payout to the victim, along with an apology. However, in March 2000, Durham’s conviction was set aside, by a unanimous judgment of the Court of Appeal, because the trial judge’s summing up "lacked judicial balance". The Director of Public Prosecutions will now decide whether Durham should face trial again on the rape charges.

Catholic priest, Father Kevin Cox, was charged with three counts of sexual assault against Margaret Heathwood who claimed he began sexually abusing her when she was 11-years-old. Ms Heathwood also claimed that Cox made her pregnancy at 17 then gave her $200.00 towards the cost of an abortion when she was sitting her HSC trials. After giving evidence at the committal hearing in Campbelltown Local Court in July 1997, Ms Heathwood returned to the public gallery where Cox sat, and suddenly produced a knife that she plunged it into her neck, telling the priest: "This is for your, Kevin." Although Cox was convicted of the charges, the offences having occurred some 20 years earlier, the conviction was later overturned by three appeal court judges, leaving Ms Heathwood devastated.

Former radio personality, Hadyn Sargent, was charged with 12 child sex-related offences allegedly committed while he was a Church of Christ Minister more than 30 years earlier. The offences were allegedly committed against Norman Kozeluh, between 1959 and 1960, when he was placed in Sargent’s care by a court. The charges were later dropped.

Christian Brother, Robert Charles Best, the principal of a Christian Brothers primary school, was found guilty in 1998 of six counts of indecent assault and not guilty on a further 12 sex offences relating to three students between 1969 and 1971. Best had allegedly fondled a grade four boy four times as he sat next to the student in class pretending to take an interest in his work. He also allegedly twice abused a grade six boy at the school’s sick bay. Best was sentenced to two years’ jail but won a retrial in 1998 when the appeal court quashed the convictions and ordered a new trial which has not yet taken place.

A Christian Brother facing 72 charges of alleged sexual abuse of 35 Aboriginal children, some as young as six, appearing in NT Supreme Court was found guilty of several of the charges in May 1995. Sentenced to five years imprisonment, the Brother, whose name was suppressed by the court, later appealed his conviction which was quashed in October 95 and no re-trial was ordered.

Former priest Father Michael Charles Glennon was convicted in 1991 of five charges of sexually assaulting teenage boys and a girl while Glennon was master of a karate school run by the Peaceful Hand Foundation at a property at Lancefield. He was sentenced to nine years jail but the High Court later ruled that the trial judge, Judge Neesham, had misdirected the jury in relation to one of the charges involving a teenage boy, and that this had led to a "substantial miscarriage of justice’’, quashing the conviction and ordering a new trial. The decision added another chapter to one of Victoria’s longest-running legal battles, which has been to court 12 times with Glennon convicted, acquitted on appeal, then had his convictions reinstated on this and other sex charges.

PLEASE NOTE: A FURTHER FORTY-FIVE CLERGY/CHURCH OFFICIALS ARE LISTED IN THE AUSTRALIAN PAEDOPHILE AND SEX OFFENDER INDEX THAT HAVE NOT EVEN BEEN MENTIONED IN THIS BOOKLET

The book The Australian Paedophile and Sex Offender Index, published in 1996, includes a listing of offenders by occupation. This listing reveals that Clergy and Church Officials make up the largest single group of offenders. Of the more than 350 offenders named in the book, 68 were Clergy & Church Officials, 38 were Teachers, Educators, Universities and Schools Related (but not religious teachers) followed by 34 Computers, Videotaping, Video Games, Entertainment & Media Related. Other occupations prominently listed included Public Servants, including Members of Parliament, Councillors, Council Workers, Defence And Police Force Members and Self-Employed, Managers, Directors, Farming And Business Related. The thoroughly researched book found no prostitutes, no sex shop owners, no X video producers and no adult publishers with paedophile backgrounds or sex offences recorded against them.

Published in 1997 by Hodder and Stoughton, Child Sexual Abuse and the Churches by Patrick Parkinson outlines the problem from within the church and offers a very Christian strategy as a way forward. The real problem with this approach is that it fails to recognise the root causes of why church clergy sexually assault young children and instead focuses on 'overcoming' the problems and becoming 'more vigilant' etc.

Sexual Abuse in Christian Homes and Churches by Carolyn Holderread Heggen. Published by Herald Press in 1993.

This book is written by a psychotherapist who specialises in sexual abuse. It offers hope that confronting broken sexuality will bring healing - for survivors of abuse, for perpetrators and for the church. The book drew conclusions that were well ahead of their time in this area.

Even in 1993, the book was able to state that:

'A disturbing fact continues to surface in sex abuse research. The best predictor of abuse is alcohol or drug addiction in the father. But the second best predictor is conservative religiosity, accompanied by parental belief in traditional female-male roles.'

This means that if you want to know which children are most likely to be sexually abused by their father, the second most significant clue is whether or not the parents belong to a conservative religious group with traditional role beliefs and rigid sexual attitudes (Brown and Bohn,1989; Finkelhor, 1986; Fortune, 1983; Goldstein, Kant and Hartman, 1973; Van Leeuwen, 1990).
The following have been questioned, are being investigated, allegations have been made against them or they’ve been charged with child sex crimes since 1999*:

Lachlan Wallin, teacher from St Simon’s Catholic Primary School being investigated for child pornography offences.

Anglican Reverend John Crump, 58, questioned over child pornography.

Three more priests from the Salesian order involved in sex crimes.

Robert (Bob) Brandenburg charged in 1999 with repeatedly abusing and sodomising in excess of 80 young boys (committed suicide before trial) -- [more information on Brandenburg can be found below].

New complainants come forward against Gerald Francis Ridsdale, jailed in 19904 for heinous crimes against children aged nine to 15, along with Christian Brothers Robert Best and Edward Dowlan.

A Brisbane police officer facing 46 child pornography charges suicides in September 04.

Music teacher, Gary Maxwell Featherstone charged with 62 child sex offences committed at YMCA camps.

John Davies, highly placed executive officer with the Australian Taxation Office, is charged with sex slavery.

Marist brother, John Maguire stands trial accused of 19 offences, including sexual assaults against four 11-year-old boys.

Former WA Apex volunteer, Bernard Anthony Stuart Tynas accused of child sex abuse.

Convicted paedophile and former Anglican priest Louis Victor Daniels is extradited to Tasmania to face fresh charges of sexually abusing adolescent boys.

Former lay minister Cecil Neville is accused of indecent assault by three women; two were teenagers at the time of the incidents.

Controversy surrounds Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, George Pell, with allegations of sex abuse made against him (though he was later exonerated by a church inquiry), he was known to have shared a house with notorious convicted paedophile priest Gerald Ridsdale and conceded victims of sex abuse committed by Catholic priests were required to ‘keep quite’ if they accepted compensation. Pell has also publicly stated that, “abortion is a worse moral scandal than priests sexually abusing young people.”

Former scoutmaster Delville James Strickland is charged with 63 sex offences against children, some under 14 years of age.

Boarding master Kevin George Guy, of Toowoomba Preparatory School, commits suicide on the day he is due to face charges of indecently dealing with a girl in Year 7. A second victim later came forward, both receiving large compensation claims.

A former teacher from Melbourne’s Xavier Catholic boys’ school charged with child pornography in 2003.

Julian Bruce Dever, teacher from an exclusive Catholic high school on the Gold Coast, charged with sexually abusing a former teenage student.

Former AFL football legend, Barry Cable, investigated for sexually abusing a girl who at the time was aged 12 to 13.

Former archdeacon of Seymour’s Anglican Church in Victoria, Alan Sapsford, is charged with gross indecency, indecent assault and committing an indecent act with a child.

Catholic priest Father James Fletcher, of the diocese of Maitland-Newcastle, charged with child sexual assault offences.

Former Mount Isa Catholic Priest charged with 26 child sex offences.

The following have been found guilty, pleaded guilty or settled child sex crimes out of court since 1999*:

Magistrate Michael Esmond Frederick convicted of sex with 15-year-old girl.

Former top ranking Salesian priest, Father Julian Fox settles case involving sex abuse of two complainants.

Salesian priest, David Rapson sentenced to two years jail for sex abuse and the church has paid out more than $35,000 to victims.

Perth Catholic school teacher, Alan John Vella, from St Brigid’s Primary School, was among five West Australian men to plead guilty to a total of nine counts of possessing, copying and selling illicit images of children, as part of Operation Auxin.

Convicted paedophile Brian Perkins, allowed to work at St Anne’s Special Catholic School in SA after his earlier convictions for child sex offences, is sentenced to more than 10 years jail for abusing 36 more students.

Catholic priest Michael McArdle admits 62 counts of abusing 16 children and is sentenced to six years jail in 2003.

Michael Crowley, co-author of the Tasmanian Anglican Church’s 1998 report into child abuse, Not the Way of Christ serves one year of a two-and-a-half year sentence for sex offences against a teenage girl, aged under 13when the offences began.

Scout leader, Gregory John Kench, jailed for ten years for sexually abusing 13-year-old boy.

Former Anglican priest, Garth Hawkins pleads guilty to child sex charges involving seven victims.

Convicted paedophile and former Queensland Labor MP Bill D’Arcy is found guilty of more child sex offences.

Kristian King, a former primary school teacher and babysitter, pleads guilty to making child pornography and later pleads guilty to 12 child sex charges, including sexual penetration and indecent acts with a four-year old.

Two Wesley singing teachers, Trevor John Alexander and his wife Elspeth McKenzie, found guilty of ten and seven charges, respectively, relating to sex with a 14-year-old girl.

Anglican priest Peter William Brazier pleads guilty in 2002 to seven sex charges against a 15-year-old boy. In 1994, Brazier had pleaded guilty to three counts of indecently assaulting another boy, at Tailem Bend-Meningie.

Catholic priest in Tasmania pleads guilty to seven counts of indecently assaulting a girl aged 14-16 at the time.

Former Melbourne priest Desmond Laurence Gannon gets a suspended jail sentence for indecently assaulting boys 20 years earlier.
Church-going family man Robert George Marlow jailed for molesting 13-year-old boy in Fiji.

Head of Catholic Church in Geelong pleads guilty to sex offences.
Prominent Catholic priest, Father Paul McLauchlan convicted of sex with two teenage boys in his care.

Former Catholic priest David Daniel found guilty of 16 sex offences against four victims, aged from 6 years, and pleads guilty to another two charges.

Perth church volunteer, Ronald William Bartlett, pleads guilty to 13 sex charges involving boys aged nine to 12.

Former Anglican rector Robert Ellmore, who had previous convictions for child sexual assault, pleads guilty to more sex offences, involving girls as young as five.

Former Brisbane Anglican Church Grammar School teacher and previous Father of the Year, Frederick Roy Hoskins pleads guilty to 16 child sex offences committed against victims aged nine to 15.

Convicted paedophile William Brook Whitelock, employed by Churchie Anglican Grammar School in Brisbane, pleads guilty to six charges relating to the sexual abuse of two students, aged 10 and 11.

Former parish priest Neville Joseph Creen, of North Queensland, pleads guilty to 34 counts of indecent dealings with 20 girls, aged six to 12.

Catholic priest, Father John Barry Gwillim, of Coburg, pleads guilty to nine sex abuse charges against a 15-year-old boy.

Retired Hunter Valley Anglican priest, Father Allan Kitchingham, pleads guilty to five charges of assaulting a 13-year-old boy.

Former Catholic priest, Vincent Kerin Kiss, pleads guilty to 11 counts of indecent assault and two of buggery committed against four boys, aged 13 to 15.

Former Ipswich Grammar School teacher, Kim Buchanan, pleads guilty to more than 100 child sex offences against eight male students, aged 13 to 16. Buchanan had also molested boys at Brisbane Boys’ College.

Former Victorian sect leader, Alistah Laishkochav, jailed for sexually abusing young girls then transferred to NSW to face five more warrants for sex offences.

Former policeman Donal Lavery jailed for sexually abusing a girl from age nine till she was 16, along with trying to pervert the course of justice.

Former schoolteacher Phillip Hazeldine, of Gippsland Grammar, found guilty of sexually assaulting five former students.

Disgraced magistrate Peter Liddy, convicted of sex offences against boys, is jailed for 25 years.

Sydney-based Marist Brother and teacher, Colgan Taylor pleads guilty to molesting two girls, one who was intellectually impaired, while working as a pastor in Queensland.

Church minister from Gold Coast, Young Key Hain, found guilty of rape, digital rape and indecent dealing with a child under 16.

Catholic priest, Father Adrian John Van Klooster pleads guilty 12 counts of indecently dealing with a child under 13 and four of recording the child and one of child pornography.

John Litton Elliott, a church elder who later became an Anglican priest, pleads guilty to 10 counts of sodomy and 18 counts of indecent treatment of boys aged 10 to 13.

Religious studies teacher, Michael Anton Murre, found guilty of six counts of indecent assault and two of buggery against a 15-year-old Scots College student.

Christian Brother and deputy principal at St John Bosco College in Engadine, Paul Gerard Barrett, pleads guilty to 29 charges of sexual assault, and requests the court take a further 61 similar charges into account in sentencing, for offences related to six victims as young as 13.
Teacher, sports coach and church group leader, convicted paedophile Gary John Riddle of Geelong, had his original sentence doubled by the Court of Appeal. He had previously pleaded guilty to 14 sexual offences against nine girls aged 10 to 16.

Security firm operator and convicted paedophile, Terrence Peter Bobak, of the Sunshine Coast, had his sentence doubled by the Queensland Court of Appeal. Originally sentenced for one count each of carnal knowledge and deprivation of liberty and six counts of indecent dealing with three teenage girls.

Former Baptist Church missionary, David John Gillard, pleads guilty in NSW court to 12 counts of indecency against four boys, all aged under-16, during four trips to the Philippines.

Greek Orthodox priest Andreas Papadimitropoulos pleads guilty to one count of indecent assault against a 17-year-old female parishioner.
Geoffrey Robert Dobbs, who coached gymnastics as a youth leader with two church groups in Brisbane, pleads guilty to 116 child sex offences involving dozens of young girls.

Female Catholic high school teacher, Maria Agense Loughery, is found guilty of molesting one of her students then having a four-year relationship with the girl.

[* The vast majority of offences listed above occurred prior 1999, many of them dating back decades with the offenders only charged in recent years.]

The following are accused of turning a blind eye to child sex offences committed by those under their supervision:

SA Anglican Archbishop Ian George resigns after ongoing child sex abuse scandal involving 143 victims and 58 possible church offenders who were part of a paedophile network working within the church.

Former Governor-General Dr Peter Hollingworth, previously Archbishop of Brisbane, resigns as GG amidst allegations of child sex cover-ups and after telling one victim in 1998 that men’s sexual urges were “only human”. In May 2004, Hollingworth admitted he was wrong about child sex abuse and did not “understand the ‘emotional mechanics’ of child sexual abuse and the long-term destructive effect on a victim’s later life.”
NSW Bishop Michael Malone covers up child sex abuse.

Catholic Church’s Jesuit order admits using blocking tactics to frustrate victims of sexual abuse into dropping their claims.

Boston’s Cardinal Bernard Law was involved in the long-term cover up of serial paedophile priest John Geoghan.

Baptist pastor Douglas Ray Ensbey pleads guilty to destroying evidence of the sexual abuse of a girl by church parishioner Mark Boyce.

Catholic church priests and officials from the Fawkner North presbytery withheld information regarding church worker Robert Charles Blunden, who was potentially implicated in the unsolved murder of a 12-year-old boy in 1964. Blunden was convicted of 29 child abuse offences in 1997.

Catholic Bishop of Cairns, James Foley, provides a pre-sentencing character reference for a former principle convicted of four counts relating to indecent dealings with an 11-year-old girl.

Compensation claims, inquiries and victims coming forward:

The Anglican Church of SA facing a $63 million compensation bill for 70 alleged victims in a class action suit, while the SA Police investigate more than 800 historical complaints against 600 alleged paedophiles, including ones from the Anglican Church, two Catholic schools, the Scouts movement, the YMCA, South Australian surf lifesaving and the Salvation Army.

More than 600 victims of physical, mental and sexual abuse occurring in a variety of institutions give evidence against Salvation Army’s Gill Memorial Boy’s Home in Goulburn.

In the past 15 months, 104 new disclosures of sexual assault, bullying and harassment have surfaced, involving 75 members of the Anglican Church in Melbourne.

Catholic lay lobby group, Voice of the Faithful, admits that credible abuse allegations have been made against several hundred priests in Australia, by more than 1300 victims and ‘this figure was understated’.

Forty victims seek compensation from Anglican Church regarding church worker Robert Brandenberg, whom an inquiry found had abused 80 to 200 boys and who displayed photographs of the 200 boys on a pin board in his home.

Catholic archbishop of Perth admits 39 complaints of sexual abuse, related to past events, have been lodged between 1998 and 2002.
Anglican Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn apologises for abuse of three children in the care of St Saviour’s.

The Anglican Church sued by a 21-year-old man claiming he was sexually abused at an emergency women’s shelter in the Diocese of Adelaide.

US Catholic diocese of Portland Oregon settles more than 100 claims in the last four years, filing for bankruptcy in the process.

The Roman Catholic archdiocese pays out more than $50,000 to victims of Father Ronald Dennis Pickering and the archbishop later appeals to members of Pickering’s parish to come forward with information about his misconduct.

The Archdiocese of Melbourne paid, or offered, more than $2 million in compensation to around 130 victims of sexual abuse by 22 priests.

Catholic Church and Poor Sisters of Nazareth, in Brisbane, reach an out-of-court settlement with 18 victims of the orphanage, with up to $75,000 to be paid to each victim, dependant upon the level of physical and sexual abuse they endured.

Former Catholic nun makes claim for compensation against Father James Barry Whelan for alleged sexual abuse he committed when she was a patient at St Vincent’s Hospital.

Archbishop of Brisbane, Phillip Aspinal admits receiving 157 complaints of sex abuse since his appointment in February 2002 (till May 2003), related to the Brisbane Anglican diocese.

Tasmanian victims of child sex abuse perpetrated by three disgraced priests, including SA’s notorious Bob Brandenburg, receive payouts of up to $60,000 each from the Tasmanian Anglican Synod.

While police are now seizing property and assets of paedophiles for victim compensation, church assets have not been seized, even though many child sex crimes have been committed on church premises and infrastructure
Church to pay $129m over sex abuse
The Canberra Times 5 January 2005 No author

A judge in Los Angeles has unsealed the details of a record $US100 million ($A129 million) settlement with the Catholic Diocese of Orange in southern California over sexual abuse allegations against clergy.

The settlement resolves 90 lawsuits brought against the diocese, including allegations against 31 priests, 10 lay people, 1 religious brother and 2 nuns. The earliest allegation dated to 1936, the latest to 1996. It is the largest clergy-abuse settlement in the US to date. The largest previous lump-sum settlement was $US85 million paid by the Archdiocese of Boston to 552 plaintiffs in 2002. The Archdiocese of Los Angeles faces more than 500 lawsuits.
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Former priest to stand trial
Canberra Times 8 January 2005 No author

A former Anglican priest has been committed to stand trial in the Hobart Supreme Court over a string of child sexual abuse charges dating back to the 1970s. Louis Victor Daniels, 57, of Charnwood in Canberra, appeared in Hobart Magistrates Court via videolink yesterday. He pleaded not guilty to 21 counts of indecent assault and 2 counts of sexual intercourse with a young person under the age of 17.
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Accused of Vile Crimes and lying low in Sydney - Church sex suspects finally facing court
The Daily Telegraph 16 February 2005 By Lisa Davies

A brother and a priest from the Catholic St John of God Order will be extradited to New Zealand to face 64 allegations of sexual abuse which allegedly took place at Marylands Residential School, a school for boys with learning difficulties, in New Zealand. The alleged offences date back half a century.

At the Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney yesterday, two of the men, Rodger Maloney, 69, and Raymond Garchow, 56, were ordered to return to New Zealand while William Lebler, 83, was freed because of his age and ill health.

Granting the extradition order, Magistrate Hugh Dillon described the allegations as shocking and numerous and almost as bad as could be imagined.

The St John of God Order has already paid more than $4 million to 56 alleged victims of abuse and NSW Police have investigated allegations against more than a dozen St John of God brothers.
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Ex-principal on 29 charges
Herald Sun 30 March 2005

A former Catholic school principal, Frank Gerard Klep, 61, facing 29 child sex charges dating from the 1970s, appeared in Melbourne Magistrates' Court yesterday. Klep, a member of the Salesian Order, was a teacher at the order's Rupertswood College in Sunbury during the period and eventually rose to the position of principal.

Klep has been charged with 28 counts of indecent assault and one of buggery involving 8 boys, allegedly committed at Sunbury between 1973 and 1979. He was earlier charged with 5 counts of indecent assault involving a 15 year old student at the college in 1973 and has since been charged with a further 24 offences. He was released on conditional bail.
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Pedophile priest may face more changes
The Age 14 December 2004 By Ian Munro, Law and Justice Editor

Pedophile priest Gerald Francis Ridsdale will likely face more sex abuse charges relating to a further 9 people. The Director of Public Prosecutions, Paul Coghlan QC, had earlier refused to press further charges against Ridsdale because he deemed a further prosecution was "not in the public interest" as the allegations could have been heard at Ridsdale's original trial. Mr Coghlan has now responded to what he called "disquiet in the community” and has offered to reconsider that decision.

Ridsdale, 70, was jailed in 1994 on a representative 46 charges of sexual abuse involving 21 boys and girls between 1961 and 1982. He was sentenced to 18 years' jail, with a 15 year non-parole period.
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Revised offer sent to abuse victims
The Advertiser 5 November 2005 By Nigel Hunter

The victims of serial pedophile Robert Brandenberg, a former Church of England Boys Society leader, are likely to receive a revised compensation offer for consideration next week.

Yesterday, the lawyers acting for the 36 victims met Anglican Church lawyers to discuss the new offer, describing the mediation session as encouraging and a step forward.

Brandenberg drowned himself in Thorndon Park reservoir in 1999, after being charged with child sex offences.

While only 36 of his victims have made contact with lawyers, he is thought to have abused more than 200 boys in SA, Victoria and Tasmania.

Church in crisis on gays
The Australian 13 October 2005 By Jill Rowbotham, Religious Affairs writer

Powerbrokers in Sydney's Anglican diocese want to change the church's constitution to enable a split from the Church of England in England if its attitude to the ordination of gay clergy and same-sex unions remains unresolved.

Though Sydney's Archbishop Peter Jensen believes the Bible forbids same-sex unions, the 2003 election of a gay man, Gene Robinson, as Bishop of New Hampshire, in the US, and the 2002 decision by the New Westminster diocese in Canada to bless same-sex unions, have caused the crisis to escalate.

The church in Nigeria, which has the most adherents after the English church, recently amended its constitution to remove mention of ties to the Church of England over the issue. And at the end of last month, its archbishop, Peter Akinola, announced gays and lesbians would be excommunicated from the church.

There was more controversy earlier this year when the English bishops ruled that gay and lesbian clergy could register their relationships under new UK civil laws, giving them many of the tax and inheritance advantages of married couples, without losing their licences to be priests.
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A prayer for unity
Herald Sun 11 July 2005 By Nick Ralston

The new leader of the Anglican Church in Australia, Archbishop of Brisbane Dr Phillip Aspinall, yesterday called for Australia's four million Anglicans to unite and help heal the deep divisions over issues including homosexuality and ordination of women bishops.

A spokes person for the group Survivors Investigating Child Sexual Abuse (SICSA) said his election was a surprise after it was alleged in 2003 that Dr Aspinall had arranged for a young man to share a bed with a priest in Tasmania in the 1980s.

However, Dr Aspinall said extensive investigations by the Brisbane Diocesan Council had cleared him in the matter.
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Gay priest trainees' 3 years to straighten
The Australian 24 November 2005 By Jill Rowbotham, Religious affairs writer

A Vatican document, “Instruction Concerning Criteria for the Discernment of Vocations with Regard to Persons with Homosexual Tendencies in View of Their Admission to the Seminary and to Holy Orders'' was recently leaked on the internet by the Italian Catholic news agency Adista.

The document proclaims inter alia that trainee Catholic priests with “transitory'' homosexuality will have to prove they can lead a celibate life for three years before proceeding to ordination. It also reveals that the church could never admit to the priesthood men who “practise homosexuality, present deeply rooted homosexual tendencies or support so-called gay culture''. It goes on, “Those people find themselves, in fact, in a situation that presents a grave obstacle to a correct relationship with men and women. One cannot ignore the negative consequences that can stem from the ordination of people with deeply rooted homosexual tendencies”.

Pope Benedict XVI has spoken of the need to “purify'' the church after the sexual abuse scandals of recent years but the document makes no reference to current priests.

Catholic historian and former priest Paul Collins, in commenting on the document, said that although there has been no Australian research on the number of gay priests, he estimated it was up to 50 per cent.
Research conducted by former vicar John Thorburn and presented at the American Psychological Association conference in 1999, found that a sixth of Church of England vicars in Britain had extra-marital affairs and another sixth was attracted to other men. This makes British vicars more likely to be unfaithful to their wives than businessmen. Just under half the vicars surveyed admitted indulging in pornographic books and videos, one in 10 visited strip clubs and "a few" also used prostitutes, citing loneliness and depression as the driving force behind their behaviour.

In 1999, The Queensland Commission of Inquiry into Abuse of Children, led by former state Governor Leneen Forde, uncovered such pervasive abuse that 14 allegations of criminal conduct, including criminal, physical and sexual abuse, were referred to police. The 380-page report examined 1,500 files and interviewed 300 alleged victims from more than 150 Catholic and non-Catholic homes, orphanages and child detection centres operated from 1911 to the present. The report concluded that the history of institutional care in Queensland until the 1980s was one of sacrificing children’s interests to expedience. There were many cases of children being preyed upon by paedophiles in some institutions, abused, raped, starved and flogged, sometimes with great fury, using belts and sticks. Often the children bled from the beatings, were forced to strip and endure cold as punishment, were locked up in darkness and force-fed when they would not eat. Over-all, the report found widespread abuse, neglect and deprivation in institutions for children.

Victoria’s largest class action was underway in 1999, with more than 100 former state wards alleging systematic sexual, psychological and physical abuse at homes and orphanages across rural and metropolitan Victoria that were run by several religious and lay bodies, notably Catholic nuns. Some cases stem from 1955 to 1965 and involve children being flogged, used as virtual slave labour, being victimised by paedophiles and, in some cases, being shared among fellow staffers by their abusers. Ms Vivian Waller, of the Melbourne law firm Maurice Blackburn & Co, confirmed legal proceedings were underway and that "both boys and girls were repeatedly forced (by male and female staff) to perform indecent acts and to participate in sexual intercourse". She added that the abuse was often "repeated and severe" and that the state, "was the legal guardian of each state ward and had a moral and legal duty to ensure the safety of each child". More than 200 former wards have given their histories to the law firm, many of whom have viable legal claims and those who experienced the most severe forms of abuse may be awarded as much as $200,000 in compensation.

A 1998 Tasmanian independent report into allegations of sexual misconduct and paedophilia by senior Anglican Church officials received 160 telephone call and 40 pages of face-to-face submissions relating to sexual abuse by clergy, staff, teachers and volunteers -- identifying 17 individuals as abusers, 15 of which were members of the clergy. The report, known as Not The Way Of Christ, found there was a hard-core group of clergy with sexual tendencies towards young males, described by a member trying to break away from the group as the "grubby little circle". Two males and one female also disclosed being raped as children and one male told how he and his sister were sexually abused over a five year period. The report also found eight women had entered into sexual relationships with ministers as adults and eleven people said they’d been victims of sexual abuse while boarding at Anglican schools. Several people also raised concerns about a lack of action by the church over the allegations.

According to Broken Rites, a support organisation for victims of sexual, physical or emotional abuse from members of religious organisations, 35 Catholic priests and religious brothers in Australia were sentenced for sexual crimes and five other died before their cases reached court, between 1993 and 1997. Another eight had been committed and awaited trial or magistrates’ hearings while a further dozen were charged on summons. Others were still under investigation by Police.

The New Criminology, by Max D Schlapp and Edward E Smith, studied two generations of statistics examining the population of prisons and found that about 1% of those incarcerated were atheists or people without religious training. The vast majority of inmates had been brought up with religious training and that more than half the prison population came from Catholic backgrounds in particular.

A newspaper article published in 1995 claimed that from 1987 to 1995, nearly 100 Christian Brothers, from Sydney, Wollongong, Toowoomba, Perth and Darwin, had been accused of misconduct -- typically the sexual abuse of schoolchildren