Latest news with #Fremlin
Scoop
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Call For Pope Leo To Issue Abuse Zero Tolerance Policy
Article – RNZ A Fijian abuse survivor is urging the new head of the Catholic church to adopt a zero tolerance policy for child sex abuse. Susana Suisuiki, Pacific Waves presenter/producer A Fijian abuse survivor is urging the new head of the Catholic church to adopt a zero tolerance policy for child sex abuse. Felix Fremlin was seven years old when he was molested by a New Zealand Marist Brother at his primary school in Suva. Although he had received a written apology and FJD$15,000 (approx US$6,680) in financial compensation from the Marist Brothers Order of New Zealand and the Pacific, Fremlin said it's not enough. Speaking to Pacific Waves, Fremlin said culture and faith prevents many people in the Pacific from speaking out. 'It's a Pacific island thing, everybody looks upon the church as messengers of God, and so for people to talk about it… it's a taboo thing,' he said. Seeking mental health support is also a struggle for Fremlin. 'So here, we don't have any specialists where survivors can go to for counselling. The church here has offered counselling but the counsellors here belong to the church itself. So when you go for counselling, you report back to the church.' Fremlin also expressed his dissatisfaction over Pope Leo's appointment as the new pontiff, claiming the former cardinal had allegedly concealed abuse cases of three women while he served as a bishop in Peru in 2022. However, Fremlin said the onus is now on Pope Leo to stand with abuse survivors, calling for him to enact the zero tolerance law. An earlier attempt was done in November 2024 when former Jesuit priest, Reverand Hans Zollner, joined abuse survivors at a press conference in Rome urging Pope Francis to apply the zero-tolerance law throughout the entire 1.4 billion-member church. The law would effectively remove any priests guilty of abuse from the ministry. For Fremlin, it's about taking concrete steps in protecting the most vulnerable. 'When survivors tried to seek or converse with the church, the church gives them the runaround, and always the lawyers,' he said. 'My experience in Fiji is that they bring up the lawyers and then they hide behind the lawyers you know, so I wish the pope would come on this – it's just something that he can put into law that the survivors can go to, without the church giving them the runarounds.' In a statement sent to RNZ Pacific, the New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference said significant work has been undertaken to 'promote a culture of awareness and vigilance'. An immediate risk assessment is carried out once a complainant in New Zealand comes forward. Any risk identified would result in the accused priest to step down. For those convicted of abuse, the conference said the policies in place would permanently remove them from the ministry. The conference also said that abuse survivors can seek a mental health counsellor of their choice. 'If they don't have already a counsellor, the church can provide them a list of counsellors to choose from – with some or all being people without ties to the church.' Even if Pope Leo was to eventually adopt a zero-tolerance policy, Fremlin said it'll do little to restore his faith in the church. 'It's like asking the cow to jump over the moon. It's very hard for [the survivors] to come out openly. 'We're just hoping for something concrete you know, written in black and white, that states they're doing something about it.' Pacific survivors deserve more justice – advocate A long-standing advocate of Pacific abuse survivors said they deserve more justice. Dr Murray Heasley, who was instrumental in Fremlin's case, said the payout that Fremlin and his brother John received is 'outrageous'. 'It's about dignity; it's about human rights,' he said. 'How can you be paying a fraction of the money to a Fijian survivor abused by a New Zealander in Fiji, particularly if you take into consideration some of the notion of the colonial background and the assumption of superiority of Western culture at the time… The colonial mentality seems to still be in place. 'If you happen to be a Fijian survivor that got sexually molested by a New Zealander, you're worth less as a human being? Than a Pasifika abused in New Zealand? Why the differentiation? 'It's absolutely outrageous and it has to be revisited now. The FMS Marist Brothers have massive resources.' The New Zealand Bishop Conference said each case that the church considers is unique and so is each response. Part of the response can include an ex gratia payment to a survivor as part of the 'healing process'. However, they also said that 'comparisons cannot be made between different cases across the various components of each process'. Last year, New Zealand journalist Pete McKenzie broke the story in the New York Times of how the Pacific was used as a 'dumping ground' for accused priests. Heasley said it was a 'standard procedure'. 'It's extremely common to shift predators around. It was called the geographic cure. It didn't cure anything. 'The worst predators were those who were fluent in the local language, Fiji and Samoan and Tongan, because parents trusted them. They used the language to predate and groom.' The New Zealand Catholic Bishop's Conference responded with a statement they had issued last year in response to McKenzie's story. 'We were given 10 or 11 specific names and NONE had any record of allegations of abuse before they were assigned to ministry in the Pacific. It was anything but 'common practice', the statement said. 'Catholic priests and religious [orders] have regularly been appointed to the Pacific Islands to support the faith life of communities there. For many religious orders, the Pacific is part of the same province as New Zealand. 'There is no record of any of the nine men about whom [McKenzie] enquired being accused of abuse before the order of diocese appointed to them to the Pacific. Allegations against some were not received until after their death.' As for Pope Leo's alleged handling of abuse cases in Peru, Heasley said he's concerned. 'We've seen pushback from people inside the Catholic Church calling these women 'liars'. It's an astonishing thing where you have so-called advocates of women's voices, the silence of women's voices coming in behind the pope who they see as a fellow Peruvian because he has joint citizenship.' He said canon lawyer Brendan Daly has called the sexual abuse of children the greatest threat to the Catholic church. 'None of these folks are dealing with this, and even to this point, with this new pope has yet to say anything except to deny the accusation. He has not reached out to sexual survivors, and without that, he is not an acceptable pope.' The New Zealand Catholic Bishop Conference said there are many first-hand reports 'including from victims and survivors of abuse' that have shared their appreciation for how well then-Bishop Prevost handled the cases in Peru. 'He played a pivotal role in having a religious community shut down – which is a rare and severe course of action,' the statement read.
Scoop
12-06-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Call For Pope Leo To Issue Abuse Zero Tolerance Policy
A Fijian abuse survivor is urging the new head of the Catholic church to adopt a zero tolerance policy for child sex abuse. Felix Fremlin was seven years old when he was molested by a New Zealand Marist Brother at his primary school in Suva. Although he had received a written apology and FJD$15,000 (approx US$6,680) in financial compensation from the Marist Brothers Order of New Zealand and the Pacific, Fremlin said it's not enough. Speaking to Pacific Waves, Fremlin said culture and faith prevents many people in the Pacific from speaking out. "It's a Pacific island thing, everybody looks upon the church as messengers of God, and so for people to talk about it... it's a taboo thing," he said. Seeking mental health support is also a struggle for Fremlin. "So here, we don't have any specialists where survivors can go to for counselling. The church here has offered counselling but the counsellors here belong to the church itself. So when you go for counselling, you report back to the church." Fremlin also expressed his dissatisfaction over Pope Leo's appointment as the new pontiff, claiming the former cardinal had allegedly concealed abuse cases of three women while he served as a bishop in Peru in 2022. However, Fremlin said the onus is now on Pope Leo to stand with abuse survivors, calling for him to enact the zero tolerance law. An earlier attempt was done in November 2024 when former Jesuit priest, Reverand Hans Zollner, joined abuse survivors at a press conference in Rome urging Pope Francis to apply the zero-tolerance law throughout the entire 1.4 billion-member church. The law would effectively remove any priests guilty of abuse from the ministry. For Fremlin, it's about taking concrete steps in protecting the most vulnerable. "When survivors tried to seek or converse with the church, the church gives them the runaround, and always the lawyers," he said. "My experience in Fiji is that they bring up the lawyers and then they hide behind the lawyers you know, so I wish the pope would come on this - it's just something that he can put into law that the survivors can go to, without the church giving them the runarounds." In a statement sent to RNZ Pacific, the New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference said significant work has been undertaken to "promote a culture of awareness and vigilance". An immediate risk assessment is carried out once a complainant in New Zealand comes forward. Any risk identified would result in the accused priest to step down. For those convicted of abuse, the conference said the policies in place would permanently remove them from the ministry. The conference also said that abuse survivors can seek a mental health counsellor of their choice. "If they don't have already a counsellor, the church can provide them a list of counsellors to choose from - with some or all being people without ties to the church." Even if Pope Leo was to eventually adopt a zero-tolerance policy, Fremlin said it'll do little to restore his faith in the church. "It's like asking the cow to jump over the moon. It's very hard for [the survivors] to come out openly. "We're just hoping for something concrete you know, written in black and white, that states they're doing something about it." Pacific survivors deserve more justice - advocate A long-standing advocate of Pacific abuse survivors said they deserve more justice. Dr Murray Heasley, who was instrumental in Fremlin's case, said the payout that Fremlin and his brother John received is "outrageous". "It's about dignity; it's about human rights," he said. "How can you be paying a fraction of the money to a Fijian survivor abused by a New Zealander in Fiji, particularly if you take into consideration some of the notion of the colonial background and the assumption of superiority of Western culture at the time... The colonial mentality seems to still be in place. "If you happen to be a Fijian survivor that got sexually molested by a New Zealander, you're worth less as a human being? Than a Pasifika abused in New Zealand? Why the differentiation? "It's absolutely outrageous and it has to be revisited now. The FMS Marist Brothers have massive resources." The New Zealand Bishop Conference said each case that the church considers is unique and so is each response. Part of the response can include an ex gratia payment to a survivor as part of the 'healing process'. However, they also said that "comparisons cannot be made between different cases across the various components of each process". Last year, New Zealand journalist Pete McKenzie broke the story in the New York Times of how the Pacific was used as a 'dumping ground' for accused priests. Heasley said it was a 'standard procedure'. "It's extremely common to shift predators around. It was called the geographic cure. It didn't cure anything. "The worst predators were those who were fluent in the local language, Fiji and Samoan and Tongan, because parents trusted them. They used the language to predate and groom." The New Zealand Catholic Bishop's Conference responded with a statement they had issued last year in response to McKenzie's story. "We were given 10 or 11 specific names and NONE had any record of allegations of abuse before they were assigned to ministry in the Pacific. It was anything but 'common practice', the statement said. "Catholic priests and religious [orders] have regularly been appointed to the Pacific Islands to support the faith life of communities there. For many religious orders, the Pacific is part of the same province as New Zealand. "There is no record of any of the nine men about whom [McKenzie] enquired being accused of abuse before the order of diocese appointed to them to the Pacific. Allegations against some were not received until after their death." As for Pope Leo's alleged handling of abuse cases in Peru, Heasley said he's concerned. "We've seen pushback from people inside the Catholic Church calling these women 'liars'. It's an astonishing thing where you have so-called advocates of women's voices, the silence of women's voices coming in behind the pope who they see as a fellow Peruvian because he has joint citizenship." He said canon lawyer Brendan Daly has called the sexual abuse of children the greatest threat to the Catholic church. "None of these folks are dealing with this, and even to this point, with this new pope has yet to say anything except to deny the accusation. He has not reached out to sexual survivors, and without that, he is not an acceptable pope." The New Zealand Catholic Bishop Conference said there are many first-hand reports "including from victims and survivors of abuse" that have shared their appreciation for how well then-Bishop Prevost handled the cases in Peru. "He played a pivotal role in having a religious community shut down - which is a rare and severe course of action," the statement read.
RNZ News
01-05-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Man assaulted by NZ Catholic brother wants say in election of new Pope
Cardinals walk to take their places ahead of the late Pope Francis' funeral ceremony at St Peter's Square at The Vatican on April 26, 2025. Photo: AFP/MANDEL NGAN A Fijian man sexually abused as a boy by a Catholic brother says he has a right to lobby the conclave in Rome over who it chooses as the next pope. "I'm afraid that the new Pope that's going to be picked is tainted in some way and may not fully commit to ending sex abuses and not survivor friendly," Felix Fremlin told RNZ. Assaulted as a seven year old by a New Zealand Marist brother at his Suva school, Fremlin has now joined an international group that has set up a database, Conclave Watch, aimed at vetting cardinals and posting details online. "From a survivor's point, you know it's always good to put up history of cardinals so that, you know, we hope that the right choice is made," Fremlin said. He demands a say - though he is not a Catholic any more - even if believers protested at this as interference. "From my history of being a Catholic and my history of being abused by Catholic priests and the Marist Brothers, I have a right to speak out to protect the children that's coming up." He was among abuse survivors banding together and speaking up to a greater extent than at past conclaves. Behind the watch database was the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), which said the response had been overwhelming. "Survivors and advocates from around the world continue to send us critical information," said spokesperson Sarah Pearson. Fremlin said conclaves were too secretive and should be open. "To be honest, I can't do much, but all I can do is just to make sure that from small country we try to just raise our voice up." Cardinals have discussed clerical abuse in pre-conclave talks, the Vatican said on Monday. One who took part, Jean Luis Cipriani Thorne of Peru, was secretly disciplined in 2019 following allegations of sexual abuse - he denied wrongdoing - but has defied various orders from the late Pope Francis. "This man has no place there," Pearson said. Cipriani is too old (over 80) to take part in the election once the conclave begins on 7 May, however, Catholic news site Crux said how the cardinals handled him now was an immediate "litmus test" . Fremlin said the problem was of tainted cardinals doing the choosing, as well as who they might choose. "We can't stop them choosing whoever they want to choose, but we're just hoping that common sense can prevail and they choose someone who can make a fresh start." Francis, like some other popes before him, had said the right things but not gone far enough, he added. Fremlin did not like how New Zealand cardinal John Dew had handled abuse allegations, contrasting that with what he said was more openess from Tonga's cardinal Soane Patita Paini Mafi.
CBC
04-03-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Ontario short story festival named after Alice Munro coming to an end
Organizing committee said decision to close festival was 'unanimously decided' An Ontario literary festival named after Nobel Prize-winning author Alice Munro is coming to an end. In an online post, the committee overseeing the annual Alice Munro Festival of the Short Story said it "unanimously decided" to close the festival in 2025. "The committee would like to share their sincere appreciation to the community, volunteers, and funders for their many years of support and to the authors who continued to bring exceptional programming to the event," reads the post. Festival organizers said the remaining funds will be donated to charities supporting women and children, and the short story contest will continue through Huron County Library. Festival organizers declined to comment on the decision with CBC News. "Thank you for your inquiry … but the committee is not making any further comments outside what has been posted," the committee's chair, Allie Brenner, said in an email. The move follows revelations last summer that Munro chose to remain married to her second husband after learning he had sexually abused one of her daughters as a child. In a Toronto Star op-ed, Andrea Skinner wrote that her stepfather Gerald Fremlin sexually assaulted her in the mid-1970s when she was nine years old and continued to harass and abuse her until she became a teenager. Skinner said she told Munro about Fremlin's abuse when she was in her 20s, but Munro continued living with Fremlin until his death in 2013, the same year Munro won the Nobel Prize in literature. Munro died in May 2024 at the age of 92. After Skinner's op-ed, it emerged that Fremlin had pleaded guilty in 2005 to indecently assaulting her decades earlier. He served a suspended sentence with two years of probation. A second woman later came forward to The Toronto Star, saying Fremlin exposed himself to her when she was nine years old while he was staying at her family's home, years before he and Munro were married. Media Audio | Ottawa Morning : Why do parents' sometimes protect their children's abusers? Caption: Sex abuse allegations against Alice Munro's husband highlighted the reality that abusers are often protected. As Beverley Chalmers, author of Child Sex Abuse: Power, Profit and Perversion, tells Ottawa Morning, the response is all too common. Open Full Embed in New Tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage. Munro's recognitions go beyond the short story festival. In Wingham, Munro's hometown, a literary garden is also named after the author. Verna Steffler, a friend of Munro's for more than 30 years, helped start the garden in 2002 while president of the Wingham Horticultural Society. Speaking with CBC News in July, Steffler said she was shocked by Skinner's op-ed and said she "didn't have a clue" about what Fremlin had done, expressing hope that it would spur more victims of sexual assault to come forward. On Monday, Steffler said she hadn't heard about the festival's closure until CBC News contacted her and expressed disappointment about the decision. "I think maybe, deep down, I thought it might very well come to an end. I guess I didn't expect it maybe right now, but I guess if it's going to happen, it probably would be right now," she said. Steffler said there had been no changes to the garden named after Munro, which is maintained by the horticultural society. A separate monument to Munro is also located in Clinton, Ont. "When we did the garden, the idea was, we need to celebrate. We have a world-renowned writer in our community, and we need to celebrate that," she said. "Her being the writer is totally different than her being a mother. I still fully support that she's still one of the best writers we've had." For anyone who has been sexually assaulted, there is support available through crisis lines and local support services via the Ending Violence Association of Canada database. If you're in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911.
