Vatican Commission praises Malta Safeguarding Commission for strong leadership, and transparency

The Vatican’s Commission for the Protection of Minors had praised the Maltese Safeguarding Commission for its “exemplary” guidelines.

 “The Archbishop of Malta and Bishop of Gozo were fully committed to the Church’s response to abuse and have shown strong and admirable leadership in safeguarding over a sustained period.” The Pontifical Commission said, referring to the 2024 annual report on Church safeguarding policies and procedures.

The report comes from Pope Francis’s pontificate, who challenged the Church, as the report reads, “to respond emphatically to the scourge of sexual abuse, consistent with the Church’s calling to continuous conversion away from evil and toward healing for the wounding.”

The report highlighted that all staff and board members who make up the Interdiocesan Safeguarding Commission and Secretariat in Malta are thoroughly trained safeguarding professionals. They also praised the transparency in the Safeguarding Commission, which published its safeguarding information and statistics online.

The Pontifical Commission also welcomed that the Church in Malta and Gozo introduced a whistleblowing policy, enhanced data protection measures, and specific provisions addressing online abuse, which, it said, is “a unique and welcome practice” that should be shared with other episcopal conferences tackling the growing issue of digital exploitation.

The Commission also commended the proactive leadership of Malta’s Head of Safeguarding, Mark Pellicano, highlighting that Pellicano maintains close working relationships with the heads of various lay groups and regularly meets with the Forum of Catholic lay movements, providing an encouraging platform for collaboration around safeguarding.

“The Safeguarding Commission runs regular social media and public awareness campaigns to promote its services within the community,” the Pontifical Commission said.

The Safeguarding Commission in Malta was set up soon after Charles Scicluna was nominated Archbishop in 2015, replacing the earlier Response Team established since 1999, to advise on the development of policies, best practice, prevention programmes, victim care, investigations, and assessments related to safeguarding minors and vulnerable adults.