Acta Benedicti Pp. XVI 681

SECRETARIA STATUS

I

RESPONSE TO MR EAMON GILMORE, TÁNAISTE

AND MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE

OF IRELAND, CONCERNING THE CLOYNE REPORT

Background

On 14 July 2011, following the publication on the previous day of the

Report of the Commission of Investigation into the Catholic Diocese of

Cloyne (Cloyne Report), Mr Eamon Gilmore, Deputy Prime Minister

(Tánaiste) and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade of Ireland, met with

the Apostolic Nuncio in Ireland, Archbishop Giuseppe Leanza.

In his speaking points, a copy of which he gave to the Nuncio, the Min-

ister stated: "among the most disturbing of the findings of the Cloyne report is

that the Vatican authorities undermined the Irish Church's own efforts to deal

with clerical child sexual abuse by describing the framework document adopted by

the Bishops' Conference as a mere 'study document'. The Commission have

described this intervention by the Vatican as entirely unhelpful to any bishop

which wanted to implement the procedures adopted by the Bishop's conference and

as unsupportive, especially in relation to report to the civil authorities. Frankly,

it is unacceptable to the Irish Government that the Vatican intervened to effectively

have priests believe they could in conscience evade their responsibilities under

Irish law." 1 The Minister then requested him to convey to the Holy See

a copy of the Report together with the Irish Government's views on the

matters raised, and asked for the Holy See's response in the following terms:

"I would ask you to convey this report and my Governments view's to your

authorities in the Vatican. I believe that a response is required and I look forward

to receiving it."

On 20 July 2011, the Irish Prime Minister (Taoiseach), Mr Enda Kenny,

made a speech in Dáil Éireann in which he asserted that "for the first time in

Ireland, a report into child sexual abuse exposes an attempt by the Holy See to

1 All texts are quoted according to the version made available to the Holy See.