Letters: Cardinal's conviction questioned

Cardinal George Pell, the most senior Catholic cleric to face sex charges, leaves court in Melbourne, Australia. Photo / AP

K A Benfell (letters, March 22) is far from the only staunch Roman Catholic to question the guilty verdict and jailing of Cardinal George Pell in Australia recently.

While adherents of the faith have little difficulty believing in the supernatural, many struggle when evidence-based criminal law that has evolved over many centuries is applied to the church's super-heroes like Pell.

Commentators like Benfell had no access to Pell's trials for the sexual abuse of two Melbourne choirboys in the 1990s so are in no position to second-guess the jury verdicts. However, several Australian television and radio outlets broadcast Chief Judge Peter Kidd's full sentencing remarks live.

If only doubting Thomases like Benfell had listened to that hour-plus model summing-up of the intricacies of the trial and the multiple considerations that Judge Kidd took into account when arriving at his complex sentencing arrangement.

His voice was clear and confident as he went step by step through the dreadful abuse, including sexual penetration of one choirboy, of which Pell is guilty. There was no hint that this senior judge doubted the evidence that had been produced in court.

I suspect it will have become required listening for members of the judiciary throughout Australia and New Zealand. At least the court has made a written transcript available here to enlighten Benfell and anyone interested in the Pell case, and jurisprudence more generally.

Meanwhile, Pell is likely to face civil law as the father of a now-dead second abuse victim in the recent case prepares to sue on behalf of his son, and victims from another case that police dropped also plan to pursue justice against the fallen prince of the church.

CAROL WEBB
Whanganui

Debt repayment

How out of touch the mayor and council are is shown in the Chronicle (March 14), neatly tucked away on page 2.

The new average rate increase for 2019-20 is 3.9 per cent, (St John's Hill and Springvale will, of course, be higher still) but even then the mayor would have liked the figure to be bigger.

As these continuous yearly rate rises go forward, the constant differential in the higher percentage figures paid by St John's Hill/Springvale burdens those two suburbs' ratepayers with an ever-increasing amount of the total rates collected. That is simply unsustainable.

And to sugar-coat the medicine by saying the rise is less than other councils is totally disingenuous to the intelligence of said ratepayers.

There are a few words on retiring debt. As a ratepayer, I'm not interested in a per cent figure of this and that; I want to see a total in black-and-white of the dollar amount paid per annum.

With present debt at $140 million plus, it needs multi-million-dollar repayments, not a few hundred thousand a year.

Councillor Vinsen indicated the CEO was asked to reduce costs (make cuts to the budget); 15-love to the councillors. The CEO's reply was, "Where do you want to make the cuts?" 15-15 stalemate.

The ratepayers say:
(1) cut capital works, preferably by 100 per cent. 30-15.
(2) reduce staff numbers. 40-15.
(3) freeze salary and incremental pay grade increases. Game, set and match. It's that easy.

The backbone will come into play when it's noted this scenario needs to last at least 25-plus years.

That's 250 per cent longer than the 10-yearly plan delivered every year.

As the mayor is reported to be saying to the councillors voted in by the Whanganui public, "You are not this, or that" and basically your comments will be ignored. So I will pre-empt his "you are not an accountant" reply with "no, I am not qualified as such, but I am debt-free".

F. LAW
Springvale

Terminations

Folk in favour of terminating pregnancies argue that it is just a bunch of tissue.

Well, they are right. It's a bunch of living tissue controlled by that DNA strand, which doesn't have the potential to become human because it is already human, sporting that trendy 23rd chromosome pair that dictates the gender.

TONY HORE
Whanganui

Send your letters to: The Editor, Whanganui Chronicle, 100 Guyton St, PO Box 433, Whanganui 4500; or email editor@wanganuichronicle.co.nz