A retired Quebec judge will lead a review into how the Oblates handled allegations of sexual abuse by a former priest of Inuit children in Nunavut.
The Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI Lacombe Canada) and the Oblates of the Province of France announced on Monday the appointment of former Quebec Superior Court judge André Denis to lead the Oblate Safeguard Commission.
The Oblates explained in a statement that it will aim to shed light on how the allegations against Joannès Rivoire have been handled within the Catholic congregation. She will also have the task of identifying improvements to be made to Oblate policies and governance in order to better protect minors and ensure a “high degree” of accountability.
A final report must be made public no later than 1er April 2024.
“The Oblates recognize the tragic legacy of clergy abuse and are sincerely committed to supporting Inuit peoples who are advocating for truth, justice, healing and reconciliation,” said Father Ken Thorson of OMI Lacombe. Canada.
Father Thorson said the commission fulfills a commitment the Oblates had made to many Inuit, including to examine the circumstances under which Mr. Rivoire left Canada.
“I hope the work of Judge André Denis will contribute to the healing process of survivors and intergenerational survivors who have been victimized by the clergy,” he said.
Father Thorson also hopes the results will give the Church an opportunity to learn from the broken relationship with Indigenous communities across Canada.
The retired judge is known for presiding over the first trial in Canada regarding the Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act. This trial resulted in the 2009 conviction of Désiré Munyaneza, a Rwandan citizen living in Canada, for his role in the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Munyaneza was sentenced to life in prison, without the possibility of parole for 25 years.
Mr. Denis was also hired by the Archdiocese of Montreal in 2020 to investigate allegations of sexual abuse of minors and vulnerable adults in nine Catholic dioceses in Quebec dating back to 1940 and to find all those accused of abuse who were still in the service of the diocese.
Its audit, released last year, identified confirmed or substantiated sexual abuse allegations involving 87 employees, fewer than five of whom were still working for the Church.
“I am happy to find myself at the head of this commission and I hope that my conclusions will contribute to illuminating this page of history, while enabling the Oblates to establish higher standards in terms of responsibility and safety,” said said Judge André Denis, in a press release.
Extradition request rejected
Mr. Rivoire, who is now over 90 and lives in a retirement home in Lyon, France, served as a priest in Nunavut from the 1960s until 1993, when he returned to his country of origin.
He has long been the subject of allegations that he sexually abused Inuit children while in the territory.
Nunavut Tunngavik Inc, a group representing the Inuit of Nunavut, said up to 60 children may have been abused.
Mr. Rivoire has never responded to these allegations in court and denies any wrongdoing.
A Canadian arrest warrant was issued for Mr. Rivoire in 1998, but criminal charges related to child sexual abuse were stayed in 2017.
Following a new complaint filed in 2021, Mr Rivoire was charged with one count of indecent assault on a young girl in Arviat and Whale Cove between 1974 and 1979.
A delegation of ten Inuit from Nunavut traveled to France in September to seek his extradition and raise public awareness of the case. They met with government and church officials, as well as Mr. Rivoire.
The Public Prosecution Service of Canada announced in October that France had rejected its request to extradite Mr. Rivoire and that it had exhausted all legal means to do so.
He said he was working with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) to get Interpol to issue a notice allowing Mr. Rivoire to be arrested in any other country if he leaves France.
Father Thorson said the Oblates asked Mr. Rivoire to return to Canada and face the charges. Oblate leaders in France said they fired Mr. Rivoire because of his refusal to return to Canada.
Another Priest Accused
Mr. Rivoire is not the only former Oblate priest who has been accused of sexually abusing children in Nunavut and has fled the country.
Eric Dejaeger, 76, was arrested in Kingston, Ontario last week on eight counts of allegedly sexually abusing six people in Igloolik, Nunavut between 1978 and 1982. He is currently being held in Iqaluit .
Dejaeger served part of a five-year sentence, from 1990, for child sex offenses in Baker Lake, Nunavut, between 1982 and 1989. After his release, as the RCMP investigated his activities in Igloolik, he fled to his country of origin, Belgium. He was extradited to Canada in 2011 for violations of immigration laws.
In 2015, he was sentenced to 19 years in prison for 32 offenses committed in Igloolik. He was granted statutory release in May 2022.
Father Thorson said the commission should focus on allegations about Mr Rivoire, who was never extradited to Canada.
“I hope and expect that the lessons that we will learn from governance, from what the leaders have done or have not done, will also serve us for Dejaeger,” he argued.
This dispatch was produced with financial assistance from Meta Exchange and The Canadian Press for News.