Sir, - Louis Lentin (September 30th) raises the issue of Archbishop Connell's comments on the Ansbacher accounts and asks if it is consistent with his policy on publicity surrounding the naming of those accused of child sexual abuse.
Concerning the Ansbacher accounts, Archbishop Desmond Connell, in an RTE interview, expressed a concern that the publication of names could be very unfair to particular individuals. He stated that, as a result, this issue needed very careful consideration. He then confirmed, in summary, that his position was that if, as the interviewer asked, people are proven to have involved themselves in dealings that are illicit, then their names should be published. This is an important point, one which may not have received sufficient attention. One of the central issues in this as in other situations is that premature publication of names could cause grave injustice, not least a risk of possible prejudice among potential jurors for any criminal trial which might be sought.
Church guidelines on sexual abuse are victim-focused and show a strong commitment to have cases reported to the Garda and dealt with effectively. In terms of publicity and media coverage, the report of the Irish Catholic Bishops' Advisory Committee on child sexual abuse by priests and religious outlines some guiding principles (paragraph 3.18, p.26 and paragraph 6.3, p.40). These guiding principles are consistent with what the Archbishop said about the Ansbacher accounts. A central concern of the relevant sections of these guidelines is to ensure that due process of law is not impeded and that the rights of all parties are respected as required by law and by the Constitution. - Yours, etc.,
Fr John Dardis SJ, Communications Director, Archdiocese of Dublin, Archbishop's House, Drumcondra, Dublin 5.