SANTIAGO: Pope Francis accused victims of Chile’s most notorious paedophile of slander, in an astonishing end to a visit meant to help heal the wounds of a sex abuse scandal that has cost the Catholic Church its credibility in the country.

Francis said on Thursday that until he sees proof that Bishop Juan Barros was complicit in covering up the sex crimes of the Reverend Fernando Karadima, such accusations against Barros are “all calumny”.

The pope’s remarks drew shock from Chileans and immediate rebuke from victims and their advocates. They noted the accusers were deemed credible enough by the Vatican that it sentenced Karadima to a lifetime of “penance and prayer” for his crimes in 2011.

A Chilean judge also found the victims to be credible, saying that while she had to drop criminal charges against Karadima because too much time had passed, proof of his crimes wasn’t lacking.

The Karadima scandal dominated Francis’ visit to Chile. Karadima’s victims reported to church authorities as early as 2002, but officials refused to believe them. Only when the victims went public with their accusations in 2010 did the Vatican launch an investigation that led to Karadima being removed from ministry.

Amazon is ‘heart of the church’

Meanwhile on Friday, Pope Francis travelled deep into the Amazon rainforest in Peru, demanding an end to the relentless exploitation of its timber, gas and gold and recognition of its indigenous peoples as the primary custodians to determine the future of “our common home”.

Speaking to a coliseum filled with indigenous men, women and children, many of whom were bare-chested and wearing brightly-coloured headdresses, Francis declared the Amazon the “heart of the church” and called for a three-fold defence of its life, land and cultures.

Francis said it was “essential” for governments and other institutions to consider tribes as legitimate partners when negotiating development and conservation projects.

“You are a living memory of the mission that God has entrusted to us all: the protection of our common home,” the pope said.

Published in Dawn, January 20th, 2018