Philippine bishops defend papal front runner over clerical sex abuse
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Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle is considered one of the front runners to replace Pope Francis.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MANILA - The Philippines’ governing body of Catholic bishops has issued a rare statement on clerical sexual abuse, defending Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle on the issue days before the opening of a conclave to elect a new pope
Watchdog group BishopAccountability.org warned on May 2 that Cardinal Tagle and Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin could not be relied on to protect children, with its co-director accusing the Church in the Philippines of remaining in the “dark ages”.
Both men are considered front runners to replace Pope Francis.
Cardinals from around the world are currently in the Vatican, ahead of a conclave on May 7 of the eligible ones among them to elect a new pontiff.
The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) posted a statement to its Facebook page on the night of May 3, saying that “addressing allegations of misconduct by clergy rests with the respective diocesan bishops or religious superiors” and not with Cardinal Tagle.
“Since his appointment to a full-time position in the Roman Curia, Cardinal Tagle no longer holds direct authority over any diocese in the Philippines,” the statement dated May 2 reads.
It also noted the key role Cardinal Tagle – who served as archbishop of Manila between 2011 and 2019 – had played in crafting pastoral guidelines on sexual abuse that were disseminated in 2003.
Ms Anne Barrett Doyle, co-director of BishopAccountability.org, said on May 2 that guidelines dealing with sexual abuse cases have not been published on the webpages of the Manila archdiocese or the bishops’ conference of the Philippines.
“If Cardinal Tagle cannot even get his brother bishops from his home country to publish guidelines, what on earth can we expect for him to achieve as pope of a global church?” she asked.
The document cited by the CBCP, Pastoral Guidelines On Sexual Abuses And Misconduct By The Clergy, could not be found on the body’s website by AFP journalists on May 4.
Calls to the CBCP and the Manila archdiocese were not immediately returned.
Ms Doyle reserved even harsher criticism for Italian Cardinal Parolin, calling him a “consummate secret-keeper” and saying “any hope of transparency around sex abuse will be dashed completely”, were he to be elected. AFP
