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People who experienced sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism after their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Holy See.

Gemma Hickey, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the problem.

Worldwide Strict Policy Pushed

The group is advocating for a worldwide zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any clergy member who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.

The Pontiff acknowledged that there is "opposition in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.

"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.

Inherited Issue

The current pontiff, who took the position in May, has inherited this persistent issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.

Previous efforts to resolve the situation included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to canon law to explicitly criminalize sexual abuse.

Personal Link

For the representative, who uses they/them pronouns, the drive for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian activist revealed they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between various churches.

"We trust this will set the tone for his papacy, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we seek to end abuse by religious officials."

Significant Meeting

Multiple representatives of the organization, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pontiff in his official residence.

The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.

The pontiff was described as "quite empathetic" when listening to the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for Indigenous children in North America.

They added the Pope was "compassionate" about their personal story and seemed "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."

"Survivors have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," Hickey stated. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and eager to collaborate with us."

Canon Law Changes

The organization is advocating that revisions to canon law will enable the adoption of the strict approach globally.

They have consulted experts and gathered documents that they plan to present to the pontiff.

"He appeared engaged in reviewing it," they noted.

Accountability Emphasized

A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for inaction and cover-up."

Moving Forward

Hickey shared they told the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."

After the encounter, Hickey expressed optimism for future change.

"We understand it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the end of the day, uniting and building a relationship and persisting to build that relationship is a move in the correct path," they stated.

They added that they shared with the pontiff: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can alter how the narrative ends - he appreciated that."