The Vatican on Tuesday published its first annual report on protecting minors in the Catholic Church, a move requested by Pope Francis amid pressure for more action to tackle clerical child sex abuse.
The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors said its report will be a “first step towards a process of data gathering and reporting”, and will document “where risks remain, and where advances can be found”.
Pope Francis set up the independent panel of experts in December 2014 amid an avalanche of revelations of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy across the world, and its cover-up.
But the commission has faced strong criticism over its organisation, funding and role, with several high-profile members quitting.
In 2022, Francis incorporated the commission into the Roman Curia — the government of the Holy See — and asked for an annual, “reliable account on what is presently being done and what needs to change”.
The first of these will be published on Tuesday, launched at the Vatican by the commission’s president, US Cardinal Sean O’Malley, the former archbishop of Boston who has spent decades listening to abuse survivors.
In a statement ahead of the launch, the commission described the report as a “new tool”, part of a process to set out clear standards on protecting children and vulnerable adults.
It will be divided into four areas — a review of safeguarding policies in 15 to 20 local churches each year, trends across continents, policies within the Vatican and the Church’s broader role in society.
“It collects resources and practices to be shared across the Universal Church, and makes specific recommendations to promote further progress in safeguarding,” it said.
Since becoming pope in March 2013, Francis has taken numerous measures to tackle abuse, from opening up internal Church documents to punishing high-ranking clergy, while making it compulsory to report suspicions of sexual assault to Church authorities.
But clergy are still not required to report abuse to civil authorities, unless the laws of that country require it, while any revelations made in confession remain private.
