An abbey on the island of Wales, where dozens of children were sexually abused by a monk over a decade, has promised to implement a string of recommendations, including strict limits on the contact members of the monastic community can have with visitors.
Monks on Caldey Island he will not be allowed to give advice to religious or pastoral visitors, even if he is asked or placed on his behalf with them, and under the “no touch” policy, he will have to bind any physical case.
Recommendations are included a 73-page report which examines why Father Thaddaeus Kotik can take a “flat look” at the groom, rape and sexual assault of boys and girls on the island, which is home to a community of Cistercian monks and a destination that has become increasingly popular.
It looks good too how four other men accused or convicted of sexual crimes live on the island off the coast of Pembrokeshire.
Kevin O’Connell, founder of the Caldey Island Survivors Campaign, said he felt the review did not go far enough for the non-legally binding approvals.
He said that the remains are necessary to play a large part in the protection of the people on the island. “It is only survivors of sexual abuse who see the dangers of seeing others who are blind,” he said.
On Tuesday the current abbot of Caldey, Father Jan Rossey, apologized for his abuse and cover-up; which was revealed by the Guardian in 2017.
He said: “It is with great pain and sorrow that I read in recognition of the great pain of the children who were abused by Father Thaddeus Kotik and in the veiled secrecy and veiled culture that kept this hidden.”
“Opportunities are clearly being missed to stop the abuse of children. The special heart of hearing children has spoken to adults and nothing has been done. Children and families have failed when they should have been supported and listened to. Abuses have been handed over to statutory authorities.
“On behalf of the monastic community, we sincerely apologize to all those injured and suffering due to the abuse of Thaddeus Kotik and past failures in not protecting their children and families. It is most hateful when the abuse is committed and hidden by people who are in the faith because of a monastic or priestly vocation.
He said that since becoming abbot in 2023 he had decided to create “a culture of openness and transparency”.
Earlier this year, Rossey commissioned an independent review, led by Ian Pickles, a former assistant police and crime commissioner in South Wales, into historic claims of child abuse on the island.
By review, 20 child victims of sexual abuse they would be the same. The Caldey Island Survivors Campaign has reported that the Salmamen have been approached by 50 victims – and others were inherited who had not yet come forth.
SALLA concluded that Kotik, who died in 1992, had “clearly seen” the work and “lack of leadership at the top level and at the abbey”.
Recommendations include that “all tacit contact” between monks and visitors cease. He said that it was a “community loan” that they would stay on their own.
SALLA also told survivors to sit on the island and a clear “no touch” policy should be implemented. She said: “Any accidental physical contact must be declared by the individual concerned and recorded within the day it occurred. This evidence will be reviewed as described above and any patterns identified and questioned.
Mary Battle, a former Welsh children’s deputy commissioner and chair of Caldey sub-county ward, said the recommendations should all be implemented. He said he was worried that a subcommittee would be tasked with investigating the remaining executions.
Our predecessor Rossey’s abbot Daniel van Santvoort has been criticized in a report about how he responded to revelations of sexual abuse – but he still lives on the island.
A Q&A released by the abbey says: “The abbot fully and absolutely acknowledges his mistakes and mistakes in the past. He is still a monk and a priest – those vows are made for life – but no longer in the authority of the community or the island.”