The Dominion Post
May 22 2004

Church pays more than $5m compo
by Fran Tyler

The Catholic Church is unable to say how much it has paid out in compensation to victims of abuse in New Zealand, but a tally of the amounts made public so far reveal it to be at least $5.6 million.

The biggest amount -- more than $4 million -- was paid to men who claimed they had been abused by brothers at the Order of St John's Maryland's residential school in Christchurch, a school for boys with learning and intellectual disabilities.

Five brothers are alleged to be involved. Three of them, aged 56, 67 and 81 are battling extradition from Australia to face the charges. The other two, who are based in New Zealand, are due to go to trial this year.

Another large payout was made by the church's Sisters of Nazareth order to a group of men and women who claim to have been both physically and sexually abused while in the care of the sisters and two priests.

Seventeen of the 43 complainants were paid a total of $500,000.

Catholic Communications spokeswoman Lyndsay Freer said a total figure for the amount paid out to abuse complainants was not available.

The church also did not have up-to-date figures on the number of victims or the number of priests, nuns and brothers alleged to have been abusers.

Of cases published recently, there had been about 200 victims, most children at the time they were abused.

Many of the earlier victims signed confidentiality clauses, which meant they could not take further action or speak publicly of the abuse.

This week, Society of Mary (Marist) priest Alan Woodcock was convicted of abusing 11 boys over a 10-year period.

One victim, Terry Carter, had disclosed that he had received $45,000 from the society after settling a civil case out of court. He signed a confidentiality clause but had it lifted.

Father Denis O'Hagan said the society would not make public how much it had paid out to sex abuse victims.

After publicity about Woodcock, the church received complaints from 33 people -- 10 related to Woodcock, 13 related to society members who had since died, three related for former members and seven related to those who were still part of the society.

The head of the Order of St John of God New Zealand, Australia and Pacific, Brother Peter Burke, said the more than 100 former Maryland's students who had complained of abuse had been given pastoral assistance. It included counselling, provision of medical, dental and optical expenses and services, living expenses, including motor vehicles and access to housing, and, in most cases, additional other money to help people in dire need to get on with their lives.

The order says the financial assistance is classified as "pastoral gestures", not compensation.

"It would be difficult to place a monetary value on the pastoral process to date, as it had never been intended to do so. So much of what we have been able to provide simply cannot be translated into dollar terms, and nor should it," Brother Burke said.