Diplomacy and the Vatican Sex Abuse Scandals

DEVELOPMENTS

In recent weeks the Catholic Church has been besieged by accusations of sexual abuse of children by priests. The accusations are being made across Europe and closely mirror the allegations made by many American Catholics only a few years ago. The media firestorm ignited over Holy Week, with thousands coming forward and alleging sex abuse and subsequent cover ups by the church. Even the Pope himself has been touched by the controversy, as it has been revealed that he played a hand in relocating an alleged child abuser to another parish, in order to avoid criminal prosecution. The revelation that the Pope relocated alleged abusers has prompted calls for his resignation. The Vatican has responded by suggesting that the allegations of abuse are part of a larger conspiracy to discredit the church and diminish church attendance, blaming everyone from Jews to homosexuals. The criticisms seem to center on the institutional roles of priests, the Church, and the Pope, in regard to his individual actions preceding his papal appointment. The crisis has begun to damage the international standing of the Holy See, amid questions about rescinding papal diplomatic immunity. The Holy See maintains diplomatic relations with 178 countries and cannot afford to have its diplomatic relations damaged by sex abuse scandals.

BACKGROUND

This is not the first crisis the Catholic Church has endured with regard to allegation of sexual abuse. The Church has already paid out millions of dollars to United States citizens to compensate victims for decades of rape and molestation at the hands of Church officials. The previous Pope, in his capacity as Holy See and representative of the Catholic Church, apologized to all the American victims of child abuse. The previous Pope was able to remain above the criticism by never being personally connected to the shuffling around of accused child abusers. Because Pope Benedict XVI has been tied directly to the relocating of accused abusers, the cries for his prosecution have been more aggressive.

As head of the Holy See, the Pope enjoys diplomatic immunity. He is elected by the College of Cardinals, who has been divinely inspired by God to appoint him; and he functions as a monarch within Vatican City, which is distinct from the Holy See. The Holy See itself the central government of the Church, headed by the Pope; and as such, he acts and speaks for the whole of the Catholic Church, notably including diplomatically. The Holy See has been recognized as a subject of public international law in state practice and in the writing of modern legal scholars, with all associated rights and duties analogous to those of States. It posses a full legal personality subject to international law, having the capacity to engage in diplomatic relations and enter into binding agreements. Furthermore, it maintains diplomatic relations with 177 states; is a member-state in various intergovernmental international organizations; and is respected by the international community of sovereign states. The diplomatic activities of the Holy See are directed by the Secretariat of State (headed by the Cardinal Secretary of State), through the Section for Relations with States, much like in a traditional nation state.

Vatican City is an enclave of just 44 hectares in the middle of Italy, operating as a sovereign state. However, the Vatican's diplomats serve the papacy--the Holy See--rather than the state where it is based. The Holy See, not the statelet, has had a Permanent Observer Mission at the United Nations since 1964. The Holy See is also a signatory on many U.N. treaties and conventions, including the The Convention on the Rights of the Child.

This is not the first time a group of plaintiffs has sought to undermine the Pope's diplomatic immunity. In 2005, Lawyers for Pope Benedict XVI asked then U.S. President George W. Bush to declare the pontiff immune from liability in a lawsuit that accused him of conspiring to cover up the molestation of three boys by a seminarian in Texas. Pope Benedict XVI, then known as Joseph Ratzinger, was accused of conspiring with the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston to cover up the abuse during the mid-1990s. The U.S. State Department responded, stating that the Pope was already considered to be a head of state, and automatically enjoyed diplomatic immunity. "There's really no question at all, not the vaguest legal doubt, that he's immune from the suit, period,'' said Paolo Carozza, an international law specialist at the University of Notre Dame Law School. Diplomatic immunity - combined with the difficulty of serving top Vatican officials with U.S. lawsuits - have caused previous legal failures taken up against the Church.

In the U.S., there have been three waves of media attention on sexual abuse by priests: 1985, 1992 and 2002. With each wave of scrutiny, the Church attempts to strengthen its system of dealing with accused abusers and their alleged victims. Most of the cases being discussed currently center on episodes dating back to the 1960s and 1970s, when many countries did not understand the psychology of pedophilia, had no child protective services, or the particular behaviors involved were not criminalized yet. It wasn't until 1992 that the Church’s troubled past was addressed; bishops began following the “Five Principles,” which included pastoral outreach to victims, investigations and open communication with communities. The Principles regard responding promptly to all allegations of abuse, relieving alleged offenders promptly of his ministerial duties, and immediate referral for appropriate medical evaluation and intervention; they also stress compliance with obligations of civil law, as regards reporting of the incident, outreach to victims and their families, and dealing as openly as possible with the members of the community. In 2002 there was a concerted effort by American Bishops to close in on the "exceptions," making sure that the most popular and charismatic priests were still held accountable and that the Five Principles were adhered to even in those difficult situations. In 2002, the American Church also commissioned the John Jay College of Criminal Justice to do a full prevalence study to determine how many incidents, how many victims and how many perpetrators of abuse there were from 1950 to 2002. The Roman Church followed a rigorous program of accountability to ensure the implementation of its reform efforts. Again, an outside team, the Gavin Group, has conducted the audits of these dioceses.

ANALYSIS

If the Vatican wants to be accorded the same respect as a sovereign nation within the international community, then it needs to take serious steps to address the systemic problem of sexual abuse being committed by its agents. The Holy See must also take responsibility for relocating known offenders within the church. The culture of secrecy must end. Helping child predators to avoid persecution damages the credibility of the Holy See, not just in its message, but also in its status as an international entity. The Pope must reaffirm the Church’s commitment to the Five Principles and ensure that they are uniformly adhered to throughout the world, not just in the U.S. It is fair for criticism of decisions made in the ’60s and ’70s to focus on interpretation of moral behavior, weakness in the resolve of leaders or even the disregard of procedures set out in canon law, while remembering the context of the time of the alleged abuse. The cries of victimhood and persecution are unworthy of an institution as venerated as the Catholic Church. Should the Church continue to hide child abusers, scapegoat minorities, and cry victim, then the U.S. should reconsider the Pope’s diplomatic immunity in circumstances where direct involvement by the Pope can be shown.

If the Holy See wants to be taken seriously in the international arena and to be treated as a sovereign nation then they must act in accordance with international standards. The Pope is more than a religious figure. He is akin to a head of state. He holds a unique status among all other religious leaders in the world. The sex abuse scandals are about more than just individual priests harming their parishioners. The priests are under the dominion of the Holy See as members of the Church and promoters of the faith. The Holy See asserts control over them by rewarding good behavior and punishing bad. Crying persecution is not effective leadership and is certainly not in the best interests of the Catholic Church. The Pope must start acting like a head of state if he expects to be treated as one.

Matthew Lamm is the Europe Russia Regional Editor for Foreign Policy Digest

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