# Primetime Investigates: Irish Priests in Africa



## The_Banker (24 May 2011)

Did anyone see this programme last night? Shocking, truely shocking. 

What happened in Ireland from the 50s - 90s is happening in Africa right now. Priests being moved on to another parish when reports of abuse surface. If authorities investigate then the abuser is brought home.

The church still protecting the church and letting the abused suffer.


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## ali (24 May 2011)

From Broadsheet.ie (don't know how to link this part so copied over):



If you saw last night’s Prime Time report by Aoife Kavanagh, you’ll know – if you didn’t sense it already – that Irish priests and nuns brought more than the Good Book to Africa.
The “pennies for the little black babies” funded some to go to the Third World and abuse youngsters in their care.
And they were aided by their superiors and the by-now familiar pattern: moving abusers around, not cooperating with local police, Vatican indifference etc., etc.
Fr Eamon Aylward (above), executive secretary of The Union of Irish Missionaries, went on Morning Ireland this morning to defend his organisation. You might have heard him.
What you may not know is that he was expertly coached and that it was just the start of an expensive PR operation by the UIM, – revealed in last Sunday’s Sunday Business Post – designed to limit damage.
The article says the UIM is “understood to have hired _several_ public relations experts, including Terry Prone, to manage the fallout from [the documentary].”​It goes on to highlight the importance of developing a ‘‘support system for those fronting the issue’’ in broadcast and print media.” That’s counselling for the people defending the church.
But it gets better.
After various ” internal focus groups” members identified the biggest obstacles facing the religious orders at the moment.
And they were…
‘‘Fear of losing power [and] status’’ and a ‘‘fear of change’’.​*Irish Missionaries Union Statement*


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## horusd (24 May 2011)

I didn't watch the whole thing, but I saw enough. I am sick to my back teeth of hearing about this. And the same rigmaroll of the Church to get itself out of trouble. I found the two people I saw; the young man from SA and the Nigerian woman were particularly heart breaking. I just find myself getting so angry I nearly need to switch this stuff off just because it is so disturbing.


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## Tinker Bell (25 May 2011)

Saw it on the net today - extremely distressing. And it is just the tip of the iceberg, if it follows the usual trend. If the UK can summons English paedophiles (after returning from sex holidays in Thailand), how come our judiciary can't prosecute these vile, cowardly reprobates?


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## Bronte (25 May 2011)

The_Banker said:


> What happened in Ireland from the 50s - 90s is happening in Africa right now.


 
And Ireland 1990's to 2011?  Isn't the Church still covering up, if anyone believes any different they are very naive.


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## Yorrick (25 May 2011)

R.T.E. reports that the Gardai are to investigate. Have we not enough crime in this country to investigate besides taking this on. The number of Gardai is dropping due to no recruitment. The age profile is increasing. I know that this is a terrible crime but reality must apply. Are the Gardai going to spend thousands of Euro tripping off to Africa to investigate this while the African countries do nothing


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## Firefly (25 May 2011)

Yorrick said:


> R.T.E. reports that the Gardai are to investigate. Have we not enough crime in this country to investigate besides taking this on. The number of Gardai is dropping due to no recruitment. The age profile is increasing. I know that this is a terrible crime but reality must apply. Are the Gardai going to spend thousands of Euro tripping off to Africa to investigate this while the African countries do nothing



I'm tempted to say you are trolling...


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## truthseeker (25 May 2011)

I agree with Bronte - this is hardly news, the Catholic Church is a haven for paedophiles, the uncovered abuses in this country are only the tip of the iceberg.


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## dockingtrade (25 May 2011)

NO mandatory reporting of child abuse ........ is the issuing of that policy itself not a criminal act. After all that has happened how can view have the gall to have such a policy and how can view allowed to have such a policy .


tip of the iceberg indeed


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## Teatime (26 May 2011)

truthseeker said:


> I agree with Bronte - this is hardly news, the Catholic Church is a haven for paedophiles, the uncovered abuses in this country are only the tip of the iceberg.



It was a disturbing programme alright. History repeating itself. Africa seems to be the Vatican's new cash cow.

What gets me is that the Roman Catholic Church seems to be impervious to all the scandal and criticism of recent years. They haven't really changed anything and somehow continue to be as popular given the number of baptisms, communions and confirmations taking place every weekend. I don't get it.


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## Bronte (26 May 2011)

Yorrick said:


> The age profile is increasing. I know that this is a terrible crime but reality must apply. Are the Gardai going to spend thousands of Euro tripping off to Africa to investigate this while the African countries do nothing


 
I cannot believe you wrote this.  Irish citizens are paedophiles who disguise themselves as caring priests and religious and need to be investigated.  End of.   

No doubt plenty of those child rapists specifically joined religious communities to go abroad to rape children and to have the cover of the Roman Catholic church in doing so. If I were such a depraved individual it seems like the best organisation to join bar none.  And nothing has changed in that repect.


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## Bronte (26 May 2011)

Teatime said:


> What gets me is that the Roman Catholic Church seems to be impervious to all the scandal and criticism of recent years. They haven't really changed anything and somehow continue to be as popular given the number of baptisms, communions and confirmations taking place every weekend. I don't get it.


 
In relation to communions in particular it seems to be all about money from start to finish.  How much can be spent on the outfits, the do, the hair, the make up.  It bears no resemblance that one can think of to the life of This post will be deleted if not edited immediately.  The whole think is perverse.  For true believers I have no issue.  For the other 90% who won't be seen again in church for years what can one say.


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## truthseeker (26 May 2011)

I dont understand why some international body cant start from the top down and arrest the Pope for criminal activity, aiding and abetting known criminals, and then move on down the ranks and arrest the cardinals, bishops etc who have assisted in the coverup and on down to the child abusers themselves. Is there no international body with the power to do this?


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## The_Banker (26 May 2011)

truthseeker said:


> I dont understand why some international body cant start from the top down and arrest the Pope for criminal activity, aiding and abetting known criminals, and then move on down the ranks and arrest the cardinals, bishops etc who have assisted in the coverup and on down to the child abusers themselves. Is there no international body with the power to do this?


 
I always wondered if a country could issue an international arrest warrent for the Pope. Im sure it could be done but I doubt if the political will is there to do it.


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## Sunny (26 May 2011)

The_Banker said:


> I always wondered if a country could issue an international arrest warrent for the Pope. Im sure it could be done but I doubt if the political will is there to do it.


 
I would imagine the Pope enjoys diplomatic immunity in most of the sginificant Countries around the world as the Vatican has full diplomatic relations with most of them.


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## truthseeker (26 May 2011)

Sunny and The_Banker, you got me interested in whether or not the Pope has diplomatic immunity and I found an interesting article here.

Dawkins, Hitchens and the barristers mentioned in the article are intelligent people - so presumably if they are saying its legal, it is - however, as the_banker says, the political will is not there.

On the subject of diplomatic immunity the solicitor claims in the article that:


> “There is every possibility of legal action against the Pope occurring,” said Stephens. “Geoffrey and I have both come to the view that the Vatican is not actually a state in international law. It is not recognised by the UN, it does not have borders that are policed and its relations are not of a full diplomatic nature.”


 
The Vatican do claim he has diplomatic immunity.

I mean what does it take? The man has covered up horrendous crimes, and aided criminals!!!


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## Sunny (26 May 2011)

I think he was found to have had diplomatic immunity in the Courts in the States anyway. Think the UK Government have said the same thing.


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## RMCF (26 May 2011)

It was a shocking story, but I wasn't shocked (by the revelations).

The CC is getting more sickening by the day. They have covered up some of the most evil people ever, and commited some of the worst crimes ever.


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## Tinker Bell (27 May 2011)

truthseeker said:


> I dont understand why some international body cant start from the top down and arrest the Pope for criminal activity, aiding and abetting known criminals, and then move on down the ranks and arrest the cardinals, bishops etc who have assisted in the coverup and on down to the child abusers themselves. Is there no international body with the power to do this?


 
Citizen's arrest?


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## T McGibney (30 May 2011)

Anyone like to comment on this...? (I didn't see the programme)



> *Trial by media puts society in the dock *
> 
> By John Boland
> Saturday May 28 2011
> ...


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## MrMan (31 May 2011)

Bronte said:


> In relation to communions in particular it seems to be all about money from start to finish.  How much can be spent on the outfits, the do, the hair, the make up.  It bears no resemblance that one can think of to the life of This post will be deleted if not edited immediately.  The whole think is perverse.  For true believers I have no issue.  For the other 90% who won't be seen again in church for years what can one say.



I was at one at the weekend and I have to say I enjoyed it from start to finish. The priest did an excellent job of interacting with the kids and there was a real sense of joy in the church. Happy faces all round as people watched their kids sing and and do readings etc, and plenty of comedy moments when the priest was testing their knowledge. 
There are people who are more interested in turning it into some dodgy fashion show, but by and large from my experience of actually going to them it is all about the kids.


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