“None of the statements provided by the complainant party are proof of being covering Karadima´s sexual abuses and we believe that Muñoz Minister´s trial will conclude the same”, claimed Santiago´s Archbishopric after two letters sent by Francisco Javier Errazuriz came out. Disclosing the intent to cover up case background.

We have to remember that those letters sent by Errazuriz, during his service as Archbishop of the Catholic Church in Chile, told of his supposed relation with sexual abuses investigations in which priests were involved, specifically Fernando Karadima and Diego Ossa.

In both letters the Cardinal has been giving instructions about the procedure to follow at the time they left their clerical positions in order to be interpreted as church punishments. In particular on Karadima´s case, and in like manner, in relation with the payments received by the victim on Ossa´s case.

On that point, Santiago´ Archbishopric, through a public statement, reinforce his essential commitment with the victims and the truth.

Specifically on the letter sent by Errázuriz to Fernando Karadima in 2006. They point out that its unique purpose was to persuade Karadima to abandon his parish position when he became 75 years old, accordingly with the canon law.

“Karadima told to the Cardinal that the measure will be seen as a punishment. To which he replied it was not a sentence and also showed him the way to avoid that public interpretation”.
Just as is certain in the process, on that time, Errázuriz did not have the records to confirm the denounces´s veracity. Thus, the parish priest release was because of his 75 years. “We do not hide anything”. They clarify.
Otherwise, from the letter sent to Diego Ossa in 2010, they emphasize that the document did not had the purpose to explain Oscar Obsen Payment. But it was Ossa who was insisting on the payment as an act of mercy.

“Errazuriz cardinal´s letter had the purpose to reproach father Ossa because of the decision he took to defended himself instead his lawyer. It is very important to know that on this time, July 2010, the cardinal was concluding the investigation and sending the records to Rome. Asking to the proper tribunal to sanction him by removing the prescription”, detailed.

The document add that “ it would be contradictory that by one hand Errazuriz cardinal was asking Karadima´s sanction, and on the other hand, covering his abuses”.

In addition, the document says that Ricardo Ezzati cardinal, at the time he assumed the government, asked the victims for forgiveness and expressed his empathy because of “ the suffer they have experimented during the investigation in order to verify the crimes. And also for the time they were feeling their church did not walk with them as they have expected”.

The Archbishopric emphasize that Ezzati had never offered a symbolic compensation to the complainants and that they have been working for months with them to reach an agreement. However, the victims did not want to continue with the conversations.

“We are sincerely sorry because we cannot continue with the conversations in which both parties have participate of good faith, with effort and with the objective of contribution to the personal process of renovation, recovery and reparation which the victims are living after those dramatics experiences and the serious damages the Karadima´s sexual abuses have caused” it said.
In the same way, the statement recognize the help who had brought everyone who made denounces, which allowed the case to be known for the church and the society and afford to verify and sanction the abuses.

Finally, the Archbishopric, have reasserted his compromise to this painful incidents do not happen again inside the church.