Minister for Justice Alan Shatter has insisted the Vatican did attempt to frustrate an inquiry into clerical child abuse in Ireland as recently as three years ago.
Mr Shatter, who was defending a claim made by Taoiseach Enda Kenny in his criticism of the Vatican following the Cloyne report, said the Holy See had failed to provide information to the Murphy Commission and used a diplomatic ploy to support its position.
Archbishop of Dublin Dr Diarmuid Martin has called on Mr Kenny to explain the claim. He said the Murphy report showed no evidence of the Vatican doing so and that the Holy See could find no evidence to substantiate the allegation.
"[The Vatican] failed to co-operate with the Murphy Commission," Mr Shatter said on RTÉ's Morning Ireland.
“It failed to provide it with information readily available to it, failed to furnish information it had available to it with regard to the abuse of children in both the Dublin diocese and subsequently the Cloyne diocese.
Mr Shatter said that instead of supplying information the papal nuncio simply informed the Murphy Commission the Vatican does not determine the handling of cases of child abuse in Ireland and is unable to assist in the matter.
“That request was made to the papal nuncio as the ambassador to the Vatican based in Dublin. It was open to him to obtain from the Vatican any papers and information relevant to that inquiry. Information relating to priests who had allegedly abused children. This was an issue specifically raised in the Cloyne report,” Mr Shatter said.
In a statement last night the Government repeated the claim that the Holy See gave some members of the clergy in Ireland a pretext not to co-operate with inquiries into child abuse.
“Having considered carefully the Cloyne report and the response of the Holy See, the Government of Ireland remains of the view that the content of the confidential letter in 1997 from the then apostolic nuncio, Archbishop [Luciano] Storero, to the Irish bishops, regardless of whether or not it was intended to do so, provided a pretext for some members of the clergy to evade full co-operation with the Irish civil authorities in regard to the abuse of minors. This is a matter of great concern to the Irish Government.”
The statement said the Government acknowledged and welcomed the response of the Holy See to the Cloyne report in which it expressed shame and apologised for the terrible suffering which the victims of child abuse and their families had suffered.
Last night a spokesman for the Irish Catholic Bishops said: “In light of the Government’s statement, the Catholic Church restates its commitment to best practice in safeguarding children and to working with State authorities in achieving this. The focus should now be on the future.”
