AUSTRALIA

Dying man wins record $1 million compensation payout for Christian Brothers abuse

According to ABC News, a Perth man who has been awarded a record $1 million compensation payout for child abuse suffered at the hands of Christian Brothers says he would have been happy simply with an apology. Paul Bradshaw took legal action over sexual abuse he suffered in the 1950s and 60s. Under the terms of the settlement he will be awarded $1 million and will also have his costs paid by the trustees of the Christian Brothers. It is believed to be the highest single payment awarded in Australia as a result of legal action against the Christian Brothers.

'Like a jail sentence': Teen with special needs isolated at ACT school

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that a Canberra student with high needs who wasn't allowed to go to school for more than four months is now facing a "jail sentence" when he returns to school under restrictive conditions, his family say. Abdul-Ghani Ferkh, who has complex autism, was suspended from the Woden School in early April after running off campus grounds to the local shops and stealing a toy. This week, the 18-year-old, due to graduate at the end of the year, was invited back to school under strict new conditions. The rules stop Abdul from interacting with other students and some staff and limit his movement to a fenced-off demountable classroom, which he can only access through a side gate at the back of the campus. Preparations detailed by staff in correspondence included boarding up the back rooms of the demountable and installing a floor-to-ceiling security gate along its verandah. The school, which has stated its commitment to supporting Abdul's education, told the family this was the only way to ensure his safety and the safety of their staff.

South Australian boy, 9, in serious condition after falling at school

According to News.com.au, a nine-year-old boy is in hospital in a critical condition, fighting for his life after he tripped and fell at school, suffering a serious injury. Emergency crews raced to Adelaide’s Sturt Street School around lunchtime after the student tripped and fell. Police including forensics officers and detectives have been at the school investigating. They reportedly taped off a section of the school grounds where the boy fell, and were paying close attention to a park bench.

VCE student suspended for wearing shorts in winter told skirt OK, mum claims

According to The Herald Sun, a VCE student has been suspended for wearing shorts in winter, with his mother claiming that a teacher said the boy could however wear a skirt if he wished. The boy, 17, was handed an “internal suspension” after three warnings for wearing shorts and he was to be sent to St Helena Secondary College’s junior school for the day as punishment. But the teen’s mother, who did not wish to be named so her son would not be identified, said she refused to send him to school because she did not want him “embarrassed”. The mother said her son, in Year 11 at the Eltham North school, suffers a medical condition where he overheats and gets bloody noses. She has since submitted a medical certificate, which the principal is now considering but has requested further information on the condition. The school’s uniform policy states only pants or a skirt with tights can be worn in winter, with diversions from the rules only permitted in agreement with the school. Schools set their own uniform policies. There are Victorian state schools that permit shorts to be worn in winter.

INTERNATIONAL

A New Law Targets Child Sexual Assault at USA Military Bases

PSMag.com has reported that President Donald Trump has signed into law sweeping military reforms, including new guidelines for how the Department of Defense must handle child-on-child sexual assault on military bases, both in the United States and abroad. While the military has responded to intense pressure to address sexual assault in its ranks in the past few years, an Associated Press investigation revealed how military children who were survivors of sexual assault often lacked legal protection and attention—especially when the perpetrators were other children. Under the new law, children in Pentagon-run schools will now receive the same protections against sexual assault as children in public schools in the United States. Legislators hope this will interrupt the pattern of child assault cases languishing unaddressed and unresolved.

USA report reveals several priests accused of sexual assaults in Canada

The Star and Global News Canada have reported that a grand jury document unsealed last week revealed several Pennsylvania-based priests committed assaults in the Greater Toronto Area, while others were sent to Canada for treatment after sexually assaulting children. The report contained the names of at least 11 priests with Canadian connections, including four cases where some of their alleged abuse is said to have occurred in Canada. At least seven of the Pennsylvania priests were sent to the Southdown Institute, a psychiatric facility for priests located in Holland Landing about 65 kilometres north of Toronto.

'Pope is on your side': Vatican calls clergy child abuse morally reprehensible

According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the Vatican says it feels shame and sorrow over the findings that more than 1000 children had been abused by hundreds of priests over decades while bishops covered up their crimes. The horrific findings were contained in a report released this week that shocked Catholics and non-Catholics with lurid tales of abusive priests and superiors who turned a blind eye, “Victims should know that the pope is on their side," the statement said. "Those who have suffered are his priority, and the church wants to listen to them to root out this tragic horror that destroys the lives of the innocent." Mirroring the language of the Vatican, Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, the president of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, expressed shame and remorse, acknowledging that much of the blame lay on the shoulders of bishops and promising there would be change. In its recommendations, the grand jury report called for lifting the criminal statute of limitations on sex abuse crimes and giving all victims an opportunity to sue the Roman Catholic Church in Pennsylvania, no matter how long ago the abuse occurred. Bishops in Pennsylvania have been actively lobbying against those reforms.