Ministers of religion in Western Australia are now legally required to report child sexual abuse, even if the information was gained during confessions.
Under new laws now in force, failure to make a mandatory report is an offence with a maximum penalty of $6000.
A minister of religion will not be excused from criminal responsibility even if their belief is based on information disclosed during a religious confession.
“This government is sending a clear message that nobody is above the law, including ministers of religion,” Child Protection Minister Simone McGurk said.
“For far too long abusers have been able to hide behind religion.
“It’s a shameful hypocrisy that compounds the trauma for victims and enables perpetrators to go on to abuse more children.”
The new laws deliver on recommendations from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.
The RCIRCSA was established in 2013 in response to allegations of sexual abuse of children in institutional contexts that had been emerging in Australia for many years.
The commission examined the history of abuse in educational institutions, religious groups, sporting and youth organisations, and state institutions. It issued a total of four reports that included a total of 409 recommendations.
The Final Report from the RCIRCSA was released on 15 December 2017. It was Australia’s longest-running public inquiry.
Scott Morrison, the Australian prime minister at the time, announced that the federal government had not rejected any recommendations of the RCIRCSA. He advised that the government was working on 104 of the 122 recommendations addressed to the Commonwealth.
The law changes also extend mandatory reporting requirements to early childhood, out-of-home care and youth justice workers, as well as registered psychologists and school counsellors.
Ministers of religion are the first group to come into effect, with other groups to be included in the new provisions in the next three years.
Sources
Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse
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