Archived Stop Press Items

15th May 2003 - The Australian Senate demands the resignation or sacking of the Governor-General because of mishandling of clergy abuse complaints whilst Archbishop of Brisbane. See news story

PEPPA (Promotion of Ethical Practice to Prevent Abuse) Seminar "Opening our hearts and minds to people who have experienced abuse". Sydney, June 18th 2003, 6:30-8:00pm.

Following the resignation on 13/12/02 of Cardinal Law, Archbishop of Boston and top-ranking US Catholic, due to the continuing emergence of documentation proving the diocese's cover-up of sexual abuse claims over decades:
8/4/03 Boston Globe wins Pulitzer prize for its coverage of the events
15/5/03 Poll of Boston-area Catholics shows most believe Law should be prosecuted
For a list of other bishops around the world who have resigned due to clergy sexual abuse issues, see http://www.boston.com/news/daily/13/previous_resignations.htm

1st June 2004: The report of the independent inquiry into abuse in the Anglican Diocese of Adelaide has been released.  It is available online here. NOTE-This link is to the diocesan website.  If you would like access to the report but do not wish to access a church website, please email me.

11th June 2004: Adelaide's Anglican Archbishop, Ian George, quit today in the wake of the clergy sex abuse report mentioned above, and the diocesan Professional Standards Committee's request for him to stand aside.  He joins a growing number (more than 20 since 1990) of bishops and archbishops around the world who have stood down in the wake of sex scandals in their dioceses.

28th July 2004: It has been announced that Donald Shearman, the Anglican bishop whose sexual predation of a teenage girl eventually led to the resignation of Governor-General Peter Hollingworth, will be defrocked in a formal ceremony on August 25th this year.  This is believed to be the first ever defrocking of a bishop for sexual offences.

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