‘A voice for all survivors’: Victims of child sex abuse at hands of Catholic brothers say they have finally been heard

Thursday, 3 August 2023

Warning: Graphic content

Emotions ran high for a group of men in Christchurch on Wednesday as a damning report laid bare stories of their abuse as children at the hands of a Catholic order of brothers.

The Royal Commission report described the Marylands School and Hebron Trust, run by the Brothers of St John of God until the 1980s, as “Hell on earth”.

It labelled the Halswell school as a place where vulnerable children were subjected to depravity and sexual, physical and spiritual violence while the state looked the other way.

Now tabled in Parliament, the report said the church, the order and state systems and institutions “shamefully enabled the abuse and ignored it or covered it up.”

Among survivors receiving a copy of the report on Wednesday was Eddie Marriott, who was at the school for 10 years from the age of 5 in 1974.

“I think the commission’s report delves deep enough, but not too deep,” he said.

“To do that, it would have to know my nightmares.”

Fellow survivor Adam Powell said every man who came forward had at last been listened to “instead of everything being swept under the carpet”.

“Never give up. Don’t think you are alone, because you are not,” he said.

Hanz Freller, a survivor from the Hebron Trust, a residential programme for vulnerable young people, was appreciative of the “arduous” work done by the Royal Commission, and said the report was a voice for all survivors.

The report, titled Stolen Lives, Marked Souls, is part of the Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry.

It details the horrors suffered by many of the young boys in the care of the brothers, their desperation to be believed and helped, and the “shameful” failure of the state and the Catholic Church to act. The victims were as young as 5.

“We are aware of no other circumstances or institution where the sexual abuse has been so extreme or has involved such a high proportion of perpetrators over the same extended period of time as that at Marylands School,” inquiry chairperson Coral Shaw said.

Her findings say parents sent their children to be cared for by the brothers, often on advice of the state, believing it was the best place for them. Many had learning or behavioural difficulties, many were Māori, many were wards of the state.

Instead, they experienced extreme abuse and neglect, with lifelong consequences, Shaw said.

“Devastatingly, many (survivors) grew up to suffer painful, lifelong physical injuries and illnesses caused by the abuse and neglect. Many survivors contemplated or even attempted suicide. Tragically, some have lost their lives this way.

“When children reported abuse, they were not believed. Not believed by social workers, police, the brothers or the Catholic Church.”

Two of the brothers were eventually convicted of child sexual abuse and jailed. Bernard McGrath, now 76, remains in prison in Australia and Roger Moloney, a former Marylands principal, has died. Others were considered unfit to stand trial.

The report said although the state registered and financially supported Marylands, it failed to protect the boys and stop the atrocities due to a lack of oversight.

Boys were referred to the Hebron Trust by police, the courts, and other social agencies but the Government did not adequately monitor them, it said.

“Evidence shows the Crown may well have breached Te Tiriti o Waitangi and human rights obligations.

“Survivors have suffered for years and been robbed of their potential because those who were meant to care for them shamefully enabled the abuse, ignored it or covered it up,” Shaw said.

“Without accountability, there can be no confidence that such events will not be able to occur again.”

The report found the state, the Catholic Church, and the Order of St John of God have never been held accountable for their roles in the abuse, or for failing to address the harm.

“When children did disclose abuse to police and social workers, they were not believed,” the report said.

Of the 537 boys who attended Marylands, more than one in five (118) reported abuse. The report said the true number is likely to be much higher.

Children at the church’s adjacent St Joseph’s orphanage were also abused, after being passed by the nuns who ran it to the brothers for discipline.

Of the 37 brothers, 21 had abuse allegations made against them.

Early complaints led to the order moving the brothers to other locations and paying financial settlements to victims in return for their silence.

Some of the survivors gave evidence of being made to watch young animals being killed, and being threatened that the same would happen to them if they spoke out.

One man told the inquiry of being placed at the Hebron Trust by the state as a teenager.

From the age of 15 to 19 he was regularly bound, gagged, blindfolded and raped by McGrath, mostly in the monastery sleeping quarters.

“He became violent, sometimes choking me. I often thought I was going to die,” he said. As an adult, he joined a gang, served time in prison, and lived on the streets.

Survivors told the inquiry sometimes two or more brothers abused a child at the same time, or made boys perform acts on each other. Abuse sometimes happened in sight of other children as a punishment or threat.

“Children were threatened and physically beaten into complying with the wishes of the brothers and lived in constant fear,” the report said.

The report details long-term harm including physical injury and physical and mental health problems, self-harm and suicide, criminal offending and addiction, including substance abuse.

It also outlines struggles with sexual and gender identity, financial hardship and homelessness, lack of education, an inability to trust, and difficulties in personal relationships.

“This is not a story about ‘bad apples’,” the report said.

“This report spotlights that the Catholic Church, the order and state must each bear responsibility … because it was the church, the order and state systems and institutions that shamefully enabled the abuse and ignored it or covered it up.”

Following the release of the report, Archbishop Paul Martin said on behalf of Catholic bishops in New Zealand that the nature and scale of the abuse was “abhorrent” and should never have happened.

“The church must continue to confront the difficult truths of the past, including the inexcusable abuse and suffering described in the case study report.”

Some of the survivors came forward after an investigation by reporters at The Press in 2002.

One of those reporters, Yvonne Martin, said this week she always remembered one of the survivors, who said calmly when she knocked on the door: “I’ve been waiting for you my whole life”.

“It has taken 21 years to get closer to the truth of what happened to boys who were entrusted into the care of this Catholic order,” Martin said.

Sexual violence: where to get help

• Rape Crisis 0800 88 33 00, click link for local helplines.

• Victim Support 0800 842 846.

• Safetalk text 4334, phone 0800 044 334 webchat safetotalk.nz or email support@safetotalk.nz.

• The Harbour online support and information for people affected by sexual abuse.

• Women’s Refuge 0800 733 843

• Male Survivors Aotearoa Helplines across NZ, click to find out more (males only).

• If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 111.

If you or someone you know is in a dangerous situation, click the Shielded icon at the bottom of this website to contact Women’s Refuge in a safe and anonymous way without it being traced in your browser history. If you’re in our app, visit the mobile website here to access Shielded.