The secretary for the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors has commended the Catholic Church in Southern Africa for its commitment to safeguarding children and vulnerable adults.

In an interview with Vatican News on the sidelines of the recently concluded workshop on safeguarding in the Church, Fr Andrew Small OMI said it was “very encouraging to see at the level of regional bishops conference the people who are responsible or taking up this agenda around safeguarding to come together for several days,” to dialogue “intensely”, exchange ideas, and provide essential training to strengthen safeguarding practices within the Church.

“They’re very committed, caring people, everyone here is pretty committed to the agenda and very energized by us spending time together,” he added.

From 26 February to 1 March, representatives from the six Episcopal Conferences that make up the Inter-Regional Meeting of the Bishops of Southern Africa – IMBISA- met at Padre Pio Retreat Centre in Pretoria, for a five-day workshop under the theme “Promoting Safeguarding in the Church: A Forum for Dialogue and Exchange in Southern Africa.”

In the interview with Vatican News, the Commission’s Secretary affirmed that the Church in Southern Africa can set up structures that “have the best policies and procedures to keep children safe, to prevent abuse from happening anywhere and then knowing what to do when it’s uncovered and to deal with.”

Asked about the culture of silence and how abuse cases are still seen as a taboo for some, Fr Small highlighted Pope Francis’s declaration of zero tolerance for clergy who sexually abuse children.

The church cannot remain inactive, we can’t just say because it’s a taboo we’re not going to do anything about it. People are suffering and suffering in silence, the church cannot stand on the sidelines and do nothing… The Holy Father has made very clear there is to be zero tolerance, no covering up, no turning a blind eye, no hoping it’s going to go away,” said Fr Small.

He continued, “There are policies, procedures, there are measures that are canonical procedures. They need to be followed, people need to be held to account… Leaders need to be held to account, the Holy Father said you cannot turn a blind eye and if you do, there will be consequences. So, I am serious about it because it’s a serious matter. But we can’t just say because it’s covered up or because it’s a taboo in society, I’m not going to do anything that just doesn’t work anymore.”

At the end of the five-day workshop on safeguarding in the church, representatives from the 9-member countries (Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, São Tomé and Príncipe, South Africa and Zimbabwe) of IMBISA released a final statement pledging their unwavering commitment to prioritise the safety, wellbeing, and protection of children and vulnerable adults in Catholic institutions within the IMBISA region.