Reality Check

Pedophile Problem Haunts Cornwall

A recent story in the Cornwall Standard Freeholder about a worldwide search for a pedophile (i.e. one pedophile) caught my attention.

I guess that the public are intended to think that finally Interpol and the other police agencies have developed such a sophisticated tracking system, that pedophiles around the world will cringe in fear.

It’s the kind of story that leaves out so much more information than it uncovers. Not that the abuse of one boy and the sending of his picture over the Internet isn’t important. It is important but its importance pales in comparison to what else is going on around the world.

Free Speech is the Heart of Democracy

It’s hard to believe that in the year, 2006, that a well-known historian and author, David Irving, could be sent to jail for 3 years by the Austrian government, for questioning the 6 million figure of the Jewish Holocaust. Furthermore, he made the statement in 1989 while giving a speech in that country.

The sentence is an outrage. Punishing someone for expressing his opinion about a historical event is a step backwards to the justice system of the Middle Ages.

The sentence is not only fiercely undemocratic, but is blatantly hypocritical. Cartoonists and writers mock and insult the sensibilities of Muslims and Christians with the blessing of country leaders. Our own prime minister, Stephen Harper used the ‘free speech’ defense for publishers of cartoons that were insulting to Muslims.

However, the moment that anyone criticizes the Jewish official story of WW2, free speech is ignored and the ‘hate crimes’ legislation is trotted out. Any questions about the accuracy of the Holocaust reporting are considered to be a defamation of the Jewish dead.

Currently in Canada, there are several people who have been accused of ‘hate crimes,’ one of whom is Ernst Zundel, a landed Canadian immigrant who has never been convicted of a crime in this country. Yet our government took the cowardly way out, and instead of releasing Zundel, deported him to his native Germany, where he is being tried in the same manner as David Irving. In Germany it is a crime to deny the holocaust or question any of the historic details.

The conviction of Irving is a chilling wake-up call that ‘hate crimes’ legislation is not going away.

After WW2, it was the forces of the Anti Defamation League and B’nai B’rith in Germany and Austria that changed government legislation to make it a crime to deny ‘holocaust reality.’

However, holocaust denial laws violate ancient and universal standards of justice. The principle of free speech means that everyone has the right to express alternative viewpoints, particularly about history. It means listening to views that may be distasteful but that is the legacy of ‘free speech.’

‘Holocaust denial’ laws are inherently unjust because they are selective and one sided. They prohibit dissent about only one chapter of history. Laws criminalizing dissent about other chapters of history, such as the treatment of the North American Indian or the Irish in the 19th century, would be considered outrageous.

I agree with Voltaire (1906) when he said:

"I may disagree with what you have to say, but I shall defend to the death your right to say it"

I think we need to revisit the so-called ‘hate laws’ in this country, since it is apparent that they lead to selective prosecutions based on the whims of those who wield power. We already have lots of laws on the books to deal with criminals.

In ‘1984,’ George Orwell warned that society would eventually punish ‘thought crimes’ in a totalitarian state. The David Irving case has been a flashpoint that should make us all stop and think about where ‘democracy’ is headed.

Prison Sentence for Irving is Outrageous

Excerpts taken from Mark Weber
2-20-6

A court in Austria today sentenced British historian David Irving to three years in prison for a 16-year-old violation of that country's "Holocaust denial" law.

The sentence points up a law that prevails in Austria, France, Germany, Switzerland and some other European countries that punish anyone who challenges the prevailing orthodoxy about the Holocaust.

Irving's three-year sentence is particularly grotesque because it is for a "thought crime" committed 16 years ago. For most crimes committed that long ago, a statute of limitations would have prevented punishment. Irving would not have been punished if, for example, he had stolen a car 16 years ago.

Irving's case is by no means unique. The long list of those who have been fined, imprisoned, or forced into exile for "denying the Holocaust" includes Robert Faurisson and Roger Garaudy in France, Siegfried Verbeke in Belgium, Juergen Graf and Gaston-Armand Amaudruz in Switzerland, and Guenter Deckert, Hans Schmidt and Fredrick Toben in Germany.

In Germany the trial of "Holocaust denier" Ernst Zundel is still continuing. Another German citizen, Germar Rudolf, similarly faces years of imprisonment there for "denying the Holocaust."

"Holocaust denial" laws inhibit robust and unfettered discussion about an emotion-laden and highly politicized chapter of history. They underscore the quasi-religious status that the Holocaust story has attained in western Europe and the United States.

With each passing year, "Holocaust denial" laws will be regarded as ever more bizarre and embarrassing. It is difficult to imagine that they will still be in place anywhere ten years from now.

Mark Weber is director of the Institute for Historical Review. In March 1988 he testified for five days in Toronto District Court as a recognized expert witness on Germany's wartime Jewish policy and the Holocaust issue.

The Institute for Historical Review, founded in 1978, is dedicated to promoting greater public awareness of the past, and especially socially-politically relevant aspects of contemporary history. It is recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit educational enterprise.

© 2005 Institute for Historical Review

Sexual Abuse Public Inquiry to Begin in Cornwall

After more than a decade of cover-ups and stalling, the long awaited Public Inquiry into sexual abuse of youth in Cornwall and area has arrived. Hearings are set to begin in Cornwall on November 7, 2005.

Standard Freeholder reporter, Terri Saunders provided a well-written summary of the events leading up to the Inquiry in her November 5th story. In 1992, the Alexandria-Cornwall Roman Catholic Diocese paid an alleged victim an amount of $32,000 to remain silent regarding his claims of sexual abuse at the hands of a Catholic priest.

The article traces the developments in the criminal justice system, including police and the courts, to investigate over 100 charges and numerous defendants in the past decade.

In 1997, the Ontario Provincial Police claimed that no stone was left unturned in their investigation, and that there was no need to investigate further. Not one of the 100 charges resulted in a conviction. Apparently the justice system felt that there had been no wrongdoing, and that all of our children should feel safe in Cornwall.

However, over 10,000 area citizens who signed a petition for a public inquiry to investigate these charges in 2000 strongly disagreed with the Attorney General of Ontario in this regard.

Due to the efforts of many citizens in the region, including people like: John Cleary, Gary Guzzo, Jim Brownell, Paul Scott and Alain Seguin, a Public Inquiry was approved by the provincial government in November, 2004. All citizens looking for justice to be served in this community must have been relieved by this announcement.

It is interesting to examine the attitudes of individuals who will be called to appear in this Inquiry. Some of these individual were quoted in the above-mentioned Freeholder article.

Retired Bishop Eugene LaRocque’s comment shows that he is completely out of touch when he says: “ It’s a sad commentary that you have to prove you’re innocent in the world in which we live.”

Well, my question for the retired bishop would be: “Hello, what kind of world are you living in?” Here we have a man of the cloth, a man who has supposedly devoted his life to God, but who feels he is “above the law.” In other words, he should just tell us he’s innocent and shouldn’t have to defend himself against any accusers. It’s this kind of arrogance that LaRocque displayed throughout his tenure here in eastern Ontario.

Former Bishop LaRocque, you do not have to prove anything. Follow your Catholic doctrine and simply tell the truth. Tell the Inquiry why you paid out $32,000 to an alleged victim of sexual assault for starters, and tell the Inquiry if you had any knowledge of any priests in your diocese who sexually abused children.

Judge Chilcott is way off base when he said in 2002 that it is because of the “media coverage” that the sexual abuse scandal has led to an Inquiry. This is much too simplistic an answer. Let me remind the Judge that the media tired quickly of the former Project Truth after the year 2000, with many, including prominent citizens of Cornwall, refusing even to discuss it.

Mayor Phil Poirier was not interested in discussing an Inquiry, nor did he or Cornwall City Council publicly support it until it became a reality in November 2004. As you might expect Poirier was fully on board when Michael Bryant, Attorney General called a Press Conference to announce the Inquiry in Cornwall in April 2004. Former MP Bob Kilger did nothing publicly to support a Public Inquiry between 2000-2004 so I assume he was not in favour.

The truth is that former MPP John Cleary and current MPP Jim Brownell are, to my knowledge, the only local politicians that took a stand and called for a Public Inquiry consistently and courageously.

The truth of the matter is that it was only because of the above named citizens and others, who refused to let the issue die, and kept the pressure on Queen’s Park, that the sexual abuse allegations claims were resurrected. It was only then that the media climbed on board, anticipating many sensational stories and the selling of many more newspapers to come.

As for Bishop Durocher’s comments, he sounds more objective than others, but as he states, it is a priority to defend the Catholic Church, “to the fullest.” I hope that “truth and honesty” fit in there somewhere in this defence. When Durocher talks about the “full extent of our abilities” we must remind ourselves that the most powerful institution in the world, the Vatican, represents a lot of the “ability” to which Durocher refers. The Vatican will be watching events in Cornwall, Ontario quite closely during the coming months. No doubt about that.

For some background on the Vatican’s position regarding sexual abuse charges in dioceses throughout the world, please refer to another article on this website. (Posted on April 22, 2005)

Sadly, as I have noticed in previous comments by the clergy, there is little regard or even mention of the lives of the long-suffering victims. Sometimes it is as if the victims don’t exist. It’s unconscionable but true.

Have the Catholic Church and our other institutions been telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth about children under their authority?

A Public Inquiry will ask that question next week.

United States=Police State

The signs of a police state are evident across the United States, in the wake of the Patriot Act(2001) and the Homeland Security Act which have gutted the American Constitution. Freedoms that were acquired over years and even centuries have vanished, never to return.

The constant media manipulation of what the public sees and hears on television has resulted in a mind controlled, dumbed down population. Common sense has been discarded in favour of arbitrary and draconian laws.

Florida, a repressive and corrupt state, leads the nation with regards to its shabby treatment of children. Due to the media hyping of child abduction and pedophilia, codes of conduct have been introduced in the schools whereby a teacher cannot make any physical contact with a student. This prevents a teacher from using simple restraining techniques.

In the accompanying video you will see the madness that develops when a five-year old girl acts up in a St. Petersburg class.

The teacher, unwilling to restrain the child, calls in the police who arrest the girl. It’s incredible. Three policemen surround this kindergarten girl and put handcuffs on her. You couldn’t make up this kind of stuff if you tried.

In the US the Secret Service is called in if students criticize the government. Students have been arrested for wearing baseball caps the wrong way. Schools have become prisons and therefore the students are treated like prisoners.

View Alex Jones’ Prison Planet to get a taste of what is happening to children in America today.

Just like the Nazi rise to power in Germany in the 1930’s, America in the 21st century has become a police state. People are fed Orwellian buzzwords like freedom, peace, security and safety- but in each and every case the government has the polar opposite in mind. Slavery, war, fear and panic have become the modus operandi of the government.

When the population is traumatized as it was with 9/11, when George Bush took a new generation of soldiers into the Iraqi war, when the government treats every citizen like a criminal or terrorist based on the Patriot Act, you know that the police state has arrived and is not going away.

People in the U.S. are living in fear, and in that state are ripe for further propaganda and domination. It is happening right now and most people don’t realize it.

What needs to be recaptured nationally is independent thinking, confidence and belief in oneself and one’s values, and a refusal to cave in to the sinister forces of the Bush police state.

However, time is running out in the build up to 2012 and the emerging New World Order. Bush is deliberately creating more and more hardship for Americans, and there will be a breaking point.

When the American government creates another crisis like 9/11, watch for martial law to rule the land. The FEMA internment camps are waiting for all of the dissenters and have been for many years.

There’s still time but it's running out. Whatever happens in America is only a few years away from what happens in Canada. Let’s read between the lines in our newspapers and wake up to what the real agenda is.

Pope Benedict XVI and Pedophilia in the Catholic Church

Earlier this week, a new Commissioner, Justice Normand Glaude was named to began a Public Inquiry into the allegations into the sexual abuse of minors in Cornwall, Ontario.

Feedback from the community, including Citizens for Community Renewal and chairman Paul Scott, stated that the Inquiry should be examining systemic failure in institutions such as the Catholic Church. In other words, what is the Church doing, or not doing, that has allowed abuses to happen under its watch. Furthermore, and more importantly, what action does the Catholic Church take when accusations of sexual abuse are made by alleged victims?

Evidence has been revealed this week in regards to Pope Benedict XVI and a letter that he wrote in May, 2001, stating that the “Crimine solicitationies” law(regarding strict secrecy in sex abuse cases) is still in effect. The law, to which the former Cardinal Ratzinger’s letter refers, was issued by Pope John XXIII to every bishop in the world in 1962.What this means is that as recently as 2001, Ratzinger supported and encouraged the curtain of secrecy over widespread sexual abuse by the clergy.

Two years ago, the Observer International in England published a story about the Vatican’s role in covering up sexual abuse. The story was ignored by other media for unknown reasons, but the article itself is very revealing.

One of the most explosive directives of the Vatican policy is that any clergyman in the church who defies the policy of secrecy, is liable for excommunication.

The document also calls for the victim to take an oath of secrecy when making a complaint to the Church. This ruling is consistent with what happened in the Cornwall- Alexandria diocese when $32,000 of hush money for an alleged victim was authorized by former Bishop Eugene LaRoque. It appears that he was following the orders given to him by the Vatican.

British lawyer, Richard Scorer, who acts for children abused by Catholic priests in the UK stated in 2003:

“ We always suspected that the Catholic Church systematically covered up abuse and tried to silence victims. Threatening excommunication to anybody who speaks out show the lengths the most senior figures in the Vatican are prepared to go to prevent the information getting out to the public domain.”

The letter signed by Cardinal Razinger in 2001, supporting the 1962 instruction, is still in force. That means that the new Pope, unless he states otherwise, will continue to enforce the code of silence into sexual abuse acts committed by Catholic priests.

I think that one of the challenges for the local Public Inquiry is obvious. The present Bishop for the Cornwall- Alexandria diocese should be one of the first people called to present evidence. If, as this article suggests, the Vatican has deliberately misled criminal investigations of sexual abuse cases by remaining silent and withholding evidence, then I think we have a serious breach which has led to a breakdown of the criminal justice system.

The upcoming Public Inquiry will have huge challenges ahead of it. One of the biggest will be to challenge the sexual abuse policies enforced by the Vatican, arguably the most powerful institution on the planet. To deny that change is needed is to deny a safe environment for our children and grandchildren in the future.

Inquiry into Sexual Abuse Announced in Cornwall

After weeks of delay the Attorney General of Ontario, Michael Bryant announced that a Commissioner has been appointed for a Public Inquiry into the sexual abuse of minors in Cornwall and area.

Bryant was accompanied during his presentation by local MP Jim Brownell(right), a determined and sincere advocate for the Inquiry and Mayor Phil Poirier, who became active only when the Inquiry was imminent.

Justice Normand Glaude, of Sudbury, Ontario has been named to head up the Inquiry. Glaude is a senior justice in the province and has been instrumental in setting up the Pavillion Family Resource Centre for sexual abuse victims in his own community.

Citizens and media filled the Cornwall City Hall Chambers this morning.

Peppered by questions from media, Bryant avoided specifics regarding the Inquiry. He stated that it would likely proceed in the next two months, and is expected to take place in Cornwall, although the Commissioner has the power to choose the venue.

There is no deadline for completion of the Inquiry however other inquiries in the province have lasted about one year, and can cost between $5 million and $10 million dollars. The Commissioner has a broad mandate and will operate independently from the government.

The Public Inquiry will have full subpoena powers and people named are compelled to appear. There is no civil or criminal liability associated with the truth finding mission. The purpose of the Inquiry is to find out what went wrong with the criminal justice system since only one person was convicted of sexual abuse crimes even though 114 charges were laid by the Ontario Provincial Police.

Seemingly, there have been systematic failures in the administration of justice in eastern Ontario, and there have been accusations that the Catholic Church and the Department of Probation and Parole, as well as other institutions, may have turned a blind eye to wrongdoing.

As early as 1994, for example, the Standard Freeholder reported that Bishop LaRoque stated: "the dicoese had in the past agreed to settlements involving alleged victims of child molesting priests." This statement was made after the church paid out over $30,000 of hush money to an alleged victim.

Many believe that the Inquiry will have to delve deeply to find, uncover and expose the hideous abuses that pedophiles in high ranking positions have committed against the young and vulnerable in our community.

Cornwall is not alone in dealing with the scourge of pedophilia. The sickness has increased globally on a large scale and in countries like England and Ireland, there are hundreds of investigations underway. In other countries, it is the same or worse.

Young children are severely traumatised after they have been abused, and there is an element of mind control whereby the victim is unable to recall the event. Only in later years, or when the abuse stops, do people start remembering what happened to them. Pedophilia is an insidious act, and it will take all of society's strength to counter it and eliminate it.

The success of the upcoming Public Inquiry will have far reaching consequences for the greater good of society. We look forward to the information that it will bring forward, and hope that it will result in improvements to our criminal justice system in Ontario so that our children and grandchildren will be adequately protected from sexual abusers.

Cornwall Victims of Sexual Abuse Seek Justice

Three victims have come forward in Cornwall with civil lawsuits, one seeking as much as $3.1 million for damages due to sexual abuse.

At a Press Conference held in Cornwall on February 22, 2005 in Cornwall, the law firm of LedroitBeckett from London, Ontario indicated that the lawsuits were still being issued.

The Alexandria-Cornwall Catholic diocese is being sued, as well as previous Bishop Eugene LaRocque and present Bishop Paul-Andre Durocher. Father Charles MacDonald, also of the same diocese, and former lawyer for the diocese, Jacques Leduc are being sued as well.

John Swales, a representative with LedroitBeckett, and Robert Talach, a litigation lawyer with the same company explained the process in civil lawsuit cases. Swales is himself a victim of sexual abuse.

Under a heavy media presence and a crowded public gallery, the three victims were introduced and each spoke in turn.

Stuart Labelle is suing Cornwall lawyer, Jacques Leduc for $3.1 million for the pain and suffering he is claiming to have endured since being abused by Leduc. Labelle still thinks about the abuse every day and has difficulty coping. He wants to deal with the lawsuit and then move on with his life.

Choking back tears, Albert Lalonde responded to questions by the media about his abuser, Father Charles MacDonald. Lalonde has been on a disability pension since 1992, because of a series of health problems including heart and stomach ailments and anxiety attacks. Separated from his wife for seven years, and with his life in disarray, Lalonde is also looking for closure in what has been a horrific life since being abused by Father MacDonald.

Robert Renshaw is also claiming that he was a victim of Father Charles MacDonald, and that he has endured the suffering for 13 years. Renshaw stated that he wants justice and closure for himself, but that he wants pedophiles off the Cornwall streets so that our children and grandchildren are safe.

At another venue in Queen’s Park later in the day, Attorney General Michael Bryant was questioned about the delay in beginning the Public Inquiry into sexual allegations in the Cornwall area. The Minister responded by saying that a Commissioner will be named likely within the next 10 days, at which time the Inquiry will begin.

Today will be remembered as the day in which three victims of sexual abuse in Cornwall bared their souls to the public in an attempt to find justice and inner peace. Other victims of sexual abuse in the audience will undoubtedly be watching closely and may come forward at some point.

The community is looking for truth- just as it did in 1994- when the first investigation was launched. What is unknown in the civil cases is whether they will eventually be settled out of court. If that happens, there will be no further ‘truths’ forthcoming because of gag orders likely imposed as part of the settlements.

Let’s hope the lawsuits go before the courts, and reveal the truth about the abusers for which the community has been patiently waiting for over 10 years.

But more importantly, if these three civil suits force the hand of the provincial Public Inquiry, and open the floodgates to the pedophile crisis not just in Cornwall but across the country, then in the end we will all be part of a healthier society.