The Catholic Church must make it easier to remove priests who have abused those under the age of 18 while giving victims "access to the truth," a papal commission at the Vatican said Tuesday in its inaugural report on protecting children.
The detailed global report from the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors was the first since the body was set up by Pope Francis in 2014 to try to tackle widespread abuse within the church.
While not an audit of sex abuse cases, the 50-page document sought to identify shortfalls and promote effective policies across the breadth of the church to protect children and vulnerable adults.
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