World News
New Vietnam decree graphically defines child molestation
January 7, 2020 · By Quoc Dat for e.vnexpress.net
A new decree on molestation of minors issued by the supreme court lays out what acts constitute child molestation. It describes forcing a sexual organ (penis or vagina), other organs (arms, legs, fingers, mouth, tongue) or sexual objects on sensitive areas (groin, thighs, buttocks, breasts, scrotum, anus) or the sexual organs of a person under […]
Read More...Ex-Google exec Ross LaJeunesse savages firm on human rights
January 6, 2020 · By BBC News for www.bbc.com
A former Google executive has raised concerns about the tech giant’s human rights policies as it eyes expansion in China and elsewhere. Ross LaJeunesse, the firm’s former head of global international relations, said he was “sidelined” after he pushed the company to take a stronger stance. Google defended its record in a statement, saying it […]
Read More...Southern Baptist Convention: More than 200 ministers, deacons and others have been found guilty of sex abuse, report says
January 6, 2020 · By Corky Siemaszko for www.nbcnews.com
For more than a decade, a Baptist preacher in Oklahoma has been what he calls “a lone voice in the wilderness.” Pastor Wade Burleson called on the Southern Baptist Convention to protect its flock by creating a database that would track church workers accused of sexual abuse. Such a list was published Monday, but not by the […]
Read More...Cardinal Tagle’s successor in Manila still anyone’s guess
January 3, 2020 · By Joe Torres, Manila for www.ucanews.org
Picking out who will succeed Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle as Manila’s archbishop has become a guessing game in the Philippines. The Filipino cardinal has been named by Pope Francis as Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples at the Vatican, sparking speculation who will succeed him as the Philippine capital’s prelate. One church […]
Read More...Pope lifts ‘pontifical secret’ rule in sex abuse cases
January 3, 2020 · By BBC News for www.bbc.com
The Pope has declared that the rule of “pontifical secrecy” no longer applies to the sexual abuse of minors, in a bid to improve transparency in such cases. The Church previously shrouded sexual abuse cases in secrecy, in what it said was an effort to protect the privacy of victims and reputations of the accused. […]
Read More...Pope weighs in on Asian migrant crisis
January 2, 2020 · By Ann Schneible for CNA/EWTN News for www.ucanews.org
Pope Francis has strongly called on the international community to help the scores of migrants who are currently trapped after attempting to cross the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. While around three thousand migrants have managed to make their way to Indonesia, Malaysia or Thailand, thousands more are believed to be stranded in […]
Read More...Pope Francis and UN Secretary General meet and share messages
January 2, 2020 · By aaog.blogspot.com
This morning in the Vatican Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father, Pope Francis received in audience the Secretary General of the United Nations, His Excellency António Guterres, who subsequently met with His Eminence, Pietro Parolin, the Cardinal Secretary of State, accompanied by His Excellency, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States. The meeting, according […]
Read More...Pope Francis makes it mandatory for clergy to report sex abuse
December 27, 2019 · By BBC News for www.bbc.com
Pope Francis has made it mandatory for Roman Catholic clergy to report cases of clerical sexual abuse and cover-ups to the Church. In an Apostolic letter, which is set to become Church law, he makes clear that any sexual advance involving the use of power will now be considered abusive. The clarification is being seen […]
Read More...Schoolgirl ‘rape’ in India sparks parent protest
December 27, 2019 · By UCAN Reporter, New Delhi for www.ucanews.org
Angry parents in northern India have demanded action against the management of a Catholic school after an eight-year-old girl was allegedly sexually assaulted in her classroom on Dec. 13 by an older boy. The police later arrested the boy and sent him a to juvenile home following a complaint from the principal of the Sacred […]
Read More...Funding restrictions cripple Church agencies in Pakistan
December 20, 2019 · By Pakistan for www.ucanews.org
Government has revoked licences of thousands of non-governmental agencies, including Christian groups, stopping their foreign funding Christian groups in Pakistan are trying to stop the government closing their bank accounts as part of a process it says is intended to throttle foreign funding to terrorist organizations. The government has revoked the licenses of thousands of […]
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