Caldey Island abuse monks cruel to victims, says report | Global News Avenue

Monks on a remote island treated victims of child sex abuse in a callous, hostile and cruel manner, a safeguarding review has found.

One survivor said the impact of the abuse was “a million times worse” by the way she was treated since she was on Caldy Island near Pembrokeshire.

Allegations of abuse were often made but not followed up or reported by police and a lack of questioning allowed a monk to abuse children “in full view” over a period of four decades, the review said.

The report was commissioned by Caldy Abbey, whose new abbot apologized for the pain and suffering caused.

Rebecca spent the first five and a half years of her life on Caldy Island.

From the late 1960s to 1992, resident monk Father Thaddeus Kotik sexually abused children living and visiting the island. Some comments said.

Rebecca was one of 16 survivors who shared their stories with consultant social worker Jan Pickles, who was commissioned by the abbey to write this review.

Kotick promised candy, chocolates and other gifts to Rebecca and the other children.

Then he would abuse them.

“I tried to run away, but I couldn’t,” Rebecca said.

“His hands were really rough and he held me so tight it hurt.”

The island and all the properties on it are located just off the coast of the famous seaside resort of Tenby in southwest Wales.

Caldey is owned by a group of Cistercian monks and is visited by tens of thousands of tourists every year.

In addition to the monks, there are also lay people who live and work in their homes.

Rebecca said the abuse continued throughout Cardi’s life, with the effects lasting throughout her life.

As a teenager, she suffered from self-hatred and feelings of worthlessness and was unable to make friends.

Her feelings led her to self-harm and even attempted suicide multiple times.

“I don’t know how I survived, it was horrible,” she said.

As an adult, this affected her ability to work and trust others.

Without her husband, she “probably wouldn’t be here,” she said.

Rebecca was one of six women who received “modest” compensation from the abbey in civil claims in 2017, but no apology.

She said it felt like “hush money.”

“The impact of the abuse was made a million times worse by the many cover-ups over the years,” Rebecca added.

“I feel re-victimized time and time again by the way we were treated.

“You go back to that feeling of victimhood and helplessness you had as a kid.”

Report author Jan Pickles said the monastery treated victims in a “callous manner” who were “extremely vulnerable and severely harmed” because “it happened at the hands of a monk at the monastery”.

Rebecca said the review “did her justice” and that the dean’s apology was better than nothing but came too late.

She said: “It made me even more angry and upset to learn that the abuse dated back to the 1960s because how many times could they have done something about it?

“I don’t think they are God’s people.

“They never were, they’re not accountable to anyone. It’s the worst kind of hypocrisy. They’re living a lie.”

Kaldi was first inhabited during the Middle Stone Age and has been inhabited by monks since the sixth century.

Benedictine monks from the Pembrokeshire coast occupied the site in the Middle Ages, but its modern transformation began in the early 20th century.

Aelred Carlyle, or “Druid Abbot,” founded the modern monastery and restored the Norman monastery and the church of St. Ildid.

But when the Carlisle Order went bankrupt in the 1920s and reconverted to Catholicism, the island was sold to the Cistercian Belgian Trappist monks, who still live there.

According to the island’s website, the number of monks there “became very small” in the early 1980s.

But the community is said to have subsequently started growing again.

However, the deaths of older monks have left the numbers “quite low again”.

The review outlined a number of missed opportunities and said there appeared to be lapses in leadership at the most senior levels.

The statement said multiple sexual abuse allegations against Kotick were not reported to authorities as required by law at the time.

In addition, the review said the “unnecessary confrontational response” further harmed the interests of victims and their families.

“This tactic resulted in the monastery’s practices being viewed as hostile and cruel,” the statement said.

Two of the three attorneys representing the victims called the response from Abbey and its legal team the “most hostile” response they had received from any organization.

One survivor was even threatened with legal action and another was described as a “fantasist,” the review found.

The review said other sex offenders also spent time with Cardi, including Paul Ashton lived there for seven years Using aliases while evading police.

He had unrestricted access to the IT system and used it to download indecent images of children.

He was jailed after a visitor who discovered his true identity notified the police.

The visitor believed he had been running a child pornography distribution network on the island, disguised as a cleaning company.

The review also described inconsistent tenancy and employment arrangements on the island.

It is alleged that leases on premises owned by the abbey were granted and revoked “for unknown reasons”.

Unstable conditions, irresponsible decisions and a lack of formal rights “have led to a reliance on the goodwill of the monastery,” the report said.

This means that people living there may be reluctant to do anything that might cause them to lose their homes or jobs.

Fr Jan Rossi, who became abbot last year, said protection was now his priority and he had taken steps to ensure a correct response to any accusations.

“I sincerely apologize,” he said.

“I’m very sorry for all the pain, but also sorry for not listening to (the victims) afterwards.

“It’s heartbreaking to read these stories.”

The report made 12 recommendations, which he said would be fully implemented.

Fr Young said a number of improvements had been made, including safeguarding training for everyone on the island and mandatory DBS checks.

For more information about organizations that provide information and support for victims of child sexual abuse, please visit: bbc.co.uk/actionline.