Pope Francis today (June 4, 2016) announced new legal procedures to remove bishops who botch handling sex abuse cases, saying they can be kicked out of office if the Vatican finds they were negligent in doing their jobs, according to the Independent (British) website.
In the new law, the pope answered a long-running demand by victims of abuse and their advocates to hold bishops accountable for failing to protect their flocks from pedophiles.
Victims have for decades accused bishops of covering up for abuse, moving rapist priests from parish to parish, rather than taking disciplinary action against them.
Bishops "must undertake a particular diligence in protecting those who are the weakest among their flock," Pope Francis wrote in the law, called a "motu proprio" (a legal document issued by the pope and translated "on his own initiative").
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