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Launching of Protection of Minors Course in India

ICL: Institute of Consecrated Life – Sanyasa, Bangalore, India in collaboration with the Centre for Child Protection (CCP) started a course on the Protection of Minors in Bangalore. It is intended to create awareness of the problem of child sexual abuse and to educate clergy, consecrated persons, and lay people on protective and preventive measures in handling this problem. The course includes two weeks of campus classes and a six-month online programme with the CCP.

The first one week contact classes were conducted from 22 to 27 July in Sanyasa, Institute of Consecrated Life, Bangalore with around 90 participants from all over India made up of Brothers, Priests, Religious and Lay people. Most of them will continue with the CCP's online course. The second part of the contact classes will be held from 8-14 of December 2019.

The course started due to the deep interest taken by Rev. Fr. Mathew Vattamattam, the Superior General of the Claretians as a response to Pope Francis's call to wipe out the menace of child abuse and make the church and society a safer place for minors. In his welcome address Fr. Arul Jesu Robin, CMF, the director of the Institute of Consecrated Life – Sanyasa pledged the Institute’s commitment for this noble cause. Fr. Xavier Manavath, CMF, the Episcopal Vicar for Religious in the Archdiocese of Bangalore in his inaugural address highlighted the seriousness of the crime of child abuse by clergy and consecrated persons and exhorted them to love all unconditionally as Jesus loved. Fr. James Kannanthanam, CMF and Fr. Augustine Mundiath, CMF who completed the post-doctoral programme on the Protection of the Minors took the first week’s classes. They will continue to accompany the participants as the programme managers. It is expected that the course will be offered yearly and many ambassadors of safeguarding minors will be formed at the Sanyasa, Institute of Consecrated Life.