Title: Marist Regional College apologises to survivors of historic child sex abuse
A Catholic college in Tasmania’s north-west, where six convicted child sex offenders committed their crimes, has formally apologised to survivors of abuse at the institution, saying acknowledgement of their failure to keep children safe was “long overdue”.
Key points:
- Six people have been jailed for child sex crimes, with more allegations levelled against others who have died
- Survivors spoke of their personal stories of abuse
- Survivors said the apology was just the first step in a long healing process
More than 100 people gathered at Burnie’s Emu Valley Rhododendron Gardens for the Ritual of Lament.
They heard from three survivors of abuse at the school, as well as the school’s principal, Gregg Sharman, Archbishop of Hobart, Julian Porteous, and the Marist Fathers of Australia’s Father Tony Corcoran.
Six former staff have been convicted of child sexual offences committed in the 1960s, 70s and 80s.
Another five, who have since died, are accused of similar behaviour in what’s been dubbed “Tasmania’s Ballarat”.
Principal Gregg Sharman said it was time the college publicly reckoned with its “terrible and tragic past”.