The Catholic bishops have said that a March 8th article in this newspaper "incorrectly" stated they had sought to have claims by altar boys against clergy included in the State's compensation scheme for victims of child abuse, writes Patsy McGarry, Religious Affairs Correspondent
However, despite the bishops' assertion, a document obtained by The Irish Times under the Freedom of Information Act (seen right) shows that Government officials discussed such a proposal by the bishops.
In a letter to The Irish Times today, Father Martin Clarke, spokesman for the bishops, writes: "The internal Government report quoted by your correspondent apparently states that 'it had been suggested that the scheme might be extended, e.g., to cover claims by altar boys against clergy'." He adds: "There is certainly no evidence that the inclusion of altar boys in any compensation scheme was suggested, or indeed sought, by the bishops."
However, according to a document released by the Department of Finance to The Irish Times, this matter was discussed at a meeting in the Department of Education on February 1st, 2001. It was attended by secretary-general Mr John Dennehy and others. According to the document, Mr Dennehy reported "that there have been discussions with CORI representing the congregations that ran the institutions. Independently, the bishops have been on to the Department inquiring about progress. It seems CORI are not liaising with the bishops. The bishops want a wider scheme than what is proposed. It had been suggested that the scheme might be extended, e.g., to cover claims by altar boys against the clergy. It was agreed that this was out of the question.[Very few bishops are affected by the type of abuse under discussion at the meeting, as the congregations, not the dioceses, ran the great bulk of the institutions.]"