Pope Francis today urged Vatican
disciplinarians to act "with determination" against sexual abuse
committed by members of the Catholic clergy, in his first public
pronouncement on the issue. "The Holy Father in particular asked that
the congregation ... act with determination in cases of sexual abuse,"
the Vatican said in a statement, referring to the Congregation for the
Doctrine of the Faith, which handles such cases, after the pope met with
its director. The statement noted that the policy followed "the line
established" by Francis' predecessor Benedict XVI. The Argentine pope,
elected last month, asked for "stepped-up measures to protect minors and
help those who were subjected to such violence in the past". Also in
line with his predecessor, Francis asked for a continuation of
"procedures against the guilty and the commitment of bishops'
conferences (national churches) to formulate and implement the necessary
directives in this area." The scourge of abusive priests burst into
the spotlight more than a decade ago with a cascade of scandals rocking
the Church worldwide, from Ireland to the United States, from Australia
to Benedict's native Germany. The Vatican says it continues to receive
around 600 claims against abusive priests every year, many of them
dating back to the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Sexual abuse by priests has
often been coupled with cover-ups by their superiors, typically by
transferring them to other parishes.
Legendary playback singer Manna Dey, who mesmerised generations of listeners with his inimitable voice for over five decades with hits like 'ay mere pyara watan', 'laaga chunri me daag' and 'poocho na kaise', died at a hospital here today at the age of 94 after prolonged illness. Dey, who was in and out of Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospital in the last five months for respiratory and renal problems, died of cardiac arrest with his daughter Shumita Deb and son-in-law Jnanranjan Deb by his bedside when the end came at 3.50 AM. The condition of Dey, who had made Bangalore his home for the last many years, deteriorated since yesterday afternoon, hospital spokesman Vasuki said. With the demise of Dey, the void has become complete in the famous quartet of singers Rafi, Mukesh, and Kishore Kumar, who dominated the Hindi music industry from 1950s to 1970s. The mortal remains of Dey, whose unique voice lent a rare dimension to his persona, were cremate...
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