International

The Vatican urges to end the opacity in abuse and to accelerate the resignation of pedophile religious

The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, established by Pope Francis to tackle the scourge of abuse, has published its first annual report on Tuesday, in which it claims to end opacity and accelerate the resignation of religious pedophiles, among many other indications.

The report is the result of the study of twenty local churches in the ‘ad limita’ visits made in 2023 to the Vatican, including those of Mexico and Colombia (the bishoprics must travel to Rome every five years to inform the pope and the Curia of their situations).

Its objective, according to it is read, is “to provide the possibility of reporting on its results and recommendations” to the pope, who created this commission in 2014, but also to the “surviving victims” of abuse and to all the churches on the planet.

Among its main conclusions, the report calls for greater transparency and faster assumption of responsibility.

These are some of the indications that appear in the document:

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End of opacity

The Church needs to promote victims’ access to information to face the “problem” of opacity in canonical processes. “Measures should be studied to guarantee the right of every individual to access any information that affects him, especially in cases and responsibility for abuses” (always in compliance with the data protection law).

The concept of vulnerability

Cases of abuse are not only with minors but the Church also recognizes them in “vulnerable” adults. Therefore, the commission advocates developing “a mostly uniform definition of vulnerability.”

Faster

The report admits that the victims still suffer civil and canonical processes “difficult, slow and a source of continuous victimization.” That is why he urges to “guarantee an effective, fast and rigorous management” of each case of abuse, also clarifying the role of each dicastery – “mystery” – of the Roman Curia.

Fulminant resignation

Another claim is to “speed up and accelerate the resignation process” of an ecclesial leader accused of abuse “as long as it is justified.”

Compensation

The report calls for “studying compensation policies” to exercise “rigorous” measures of reparation in the process of “healing” of the victims.

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A teaching force against abuse

Likewise, the report calls for “even more development of the Magisterium of the Church” on its duty of protection, promoting among its clergy “the dignity of children” through a “unitary and theological-pastoral” vision.

Specialization

The church, in addition, must promote a process of “professionalization” among its members and provide those who are in contact with minors with “academic opportunities” of training endowed with “adequate resources.”

“Worrying facks”

The Commission’s first analysis has found that, while some ecclesiastical authorities demonstrate a clear commitment to protection, others are only “at the beginning of the exercise of responsibilities.”

In some cases, in fact, a “worrying lack” of structures for reporting and accompanying victims has been detected, which contradicts what the pope demands in his document ‘Vos estis lux mundi’ (2023) on the rules against sexual abuse.

“Continuous conversion”

This year the Pontifical Commission has celebrated ten years in which “there has been a growth of awareness of both the reality of sexual abuse within the Church and its mismanagement.” The publication of these reports aims to “facilitate a process of continuous conversion” within Catholic institutions.

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Five years to cover everything

There are a total of 114 episcopal conferences on the planet, so the commission, led by American Cardinal Sean Patrick O’Malley, aims to study them all within 5/6 years.

International

Winter Storm Fern Leaves 30 Dead and Over One Million Without Power Across the U.S.

The massive winter storm Fern, bringing polar temperatures, battered large portions of the United States for a third consecutive day on Monday, leaving at least 30 people dead, more than one million households without electricity, and thousands of flights grounded.

In the Great Lakes region, residents awoke to extreme cold, with temperatures dropping below -20°C. Forecasts indicate that conditions are expected to worsen in the coming days as an Arctic air mass moves south, particularly across the northern Great Plains and other central regions, where wind chills could plunge to -45°C, temperatures capable of causing frostbite within minutes.

Across the country, heavy snowfall exceeding 30 centimeters in roughly 20 states triggered widespread power outages. According to PowerOutage.com, nearly 800,000 customers remained without electricity on Monday morning, most of them in the southern United States.

In Tennessee, where ice brought down power lines, approximately 250,000 customers were still without power. Outages also affected more than 150,000 customers in Mississippi and over 100,000 in Louisiana, as utility crews struggled to restore service amid dangerous conditions.

International

Spain approves plan to regularize up to 500,000 migrants in Historic Shift

In November 2024, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced a reform of the country’s immigration regulations aimed at regularizing 300,000 migrants per year over a three-year period, in an effort to counter population aging in a country where births have fallen by 25.6% since 2014, according to official data.

Going against the trend in much of Europe, Spain’s left-wing government has now approved an exceptional migrant regularization plan that could benefit up to 500,000 people, most of them from Latin America.

The measure will allow the regularization of around “half a million people” who have been living in Spain for at least five months, arrived before December 31, 2025, and have no criminal record, Migration Minister Elma Saiz explained on public television.

The plan, approved on Tuesday by the Council of Ministers, establishes that applications will be processed between April and June 30, enabling beneficiaries to work in any sector and anywhere in the country, Saiz said.

“Today is a historic day for our country. We are strengthening a migration model based on human rights, integration, and one that is compatible with economic growth and social cohesion,” the minister later stated at a press conference.

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The socialist government of Pedro Sánchez stands out within the European Union for its migration policy, contrasting with the tightening of immigration measures across much of the bloc amid pressure from far-right movements.

Central America

Honduras swears in conservative president Asfura after disputed election

Conservative politician Nasry Asfura assumed the presidency of Honduras on Tuesday with an agenda closely aligned with the United States, a shift that could strain the country’s relationship with China as he seeks to confront the economic and security challenges facing the poorest and most violent nation in Central America.

Asfura’s rise to power, backed by U.S. President Donald Trump, marks the end of four years of left-wing rule and secures Trump another regional ally amid the advance of conservative governments in Chile, Bolivia, Peru, and Argentina.

The 67-year-old former mayor and construction businessman was sworn in during an austere ceremony at the National Congress, following a tightly contested election marred by opposition allegations of fraud and Trump’s threat to cut U.S. aid if his preferred candidate did not prevail.

Grateful for Washington’s support, Asfura—who is of Palestinian descent—traveled to the United States to meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, before visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“We need to strengthen relations with our most important trading partner,” Asfura said after being declared the winner of the November 30 election by a narrow margin, following a tense vote count that lasted just over three weeks.