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Individuals who endured sexual abuse by Catholic clergy have voiced fresh optimism after their first meeting with Pope Leo at the Holy See.

Gemma Hickey, heading the anti-abuse organization, commented that the pontiff's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership spoke volumes about his commitment to addressing the issue.

Worldwide Zero-Tolerance Policy Pushed

The group is advocating for a global zero-tolerance policy that would defrock any priest who admits to or is found guilty of abusing a minor. This policy has been implemented in the United States.

The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this initiative, according to the representative.

"We were all being realistic when we acknowledged that there is pushback," they remarked.

Inherited Issue

The new Pope, who assumed the role in May, has taken on this longstanding issue that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.

Previous efforts to address the situation included an unprecedented summit on child abuse within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.

Deeply Felt Connection

For the representative, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the policy is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were victimized by a priest who was subsequently moved between different parishes.

"We trust this will establish the direction for his leadership, because we want to collaborate with him," they expressed. "Both sides share the same goal, we seek to eliminate clergy abuse."

Significant Encounter

Seven members of the coalition, which includes survivors and supporters from over thirty countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his Vatican office.

The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, lasted to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to the representative.

The pontiff was described as "very understanding" when hearing the account of a female survivor abused at a church-run institution for Indigenous children in Canada.

They added the Pope was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "very humble, humorous, and very down to earth."

"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't perceive like he was making empty promises," they commented. "I felt like he was genuine, practical, and receptive and keen to work with us."

Church Regulations Changes

The organization is hoping that revisions to church regulations will enable the implementation of the strict approach worldwide.

They have consulted experts and gathered materials that they will present to the pontiff.

"He seemed interested in looking at it," Hickey remarked.

Responsibility Highlighted

A recent Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."

The report also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for church leaders and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."

Path Ahead

Hickey revealed they told the Pope at the beginning of their meeting: "This is as much a risk for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."

After the encounter, they expressed hope for progress.

"We understand it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the end of the day, coming together and building a connection and persisting to strengthen that relationship is a step in the correct path," Hickey commented.

Hickey concluded that they told with Pope Leo: "Just because it's a difficult period, I feel like we can change how the story ends - he valued that."