Survivors group points to cracks in visa system for foreign priests after 8-year-old First Nations girl abused

CBC – June 4, 2023

There are too few checks and balances for international members of the clergy who come to work in Canada, according to a group that advocates for survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of religious leaders.

A Roman Catholic priest has been accused of sexually assaulting an eight-year-old girl in a remote Manitoba First Nation, and the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) says it's too easy for a foreign priest to be seconded into a Canadian congregation by using religious visas, with little, if any, scrutiny of their backgrounds.


Read More
By Patricia Grell August 9, 2026
CTV News - August 1, 2026 Vancouver, BC - The B.C. Supreme Court has approved a $30-million settlement for a class-action lawsuit involving historical claims of physical, psychological and sexual abuse at Vancouver College and St. Thomas More Collegiate. More than 200 former students joined the lawsuit, which alleged that some abusive Christian Brothers had been transferred from the Mount Cashel orphanage in Newfoundland. The alleged abuse occurred between the 1970s and 2013 and caused lasting emotional, relationship, and substance-abuse problems for many victims. Although most class members supported the settlement, some criticized the defendants for a lack of accountability, while several chose to pursue individual lawsuits instead.
By Patricia Grell August 9, 2026
Bishop Accountability - July 7, 2026 Winnipeg, AL - A Winnipeg man in his mid-40s has settled a lawsuit alleging that he was sexually abused by two Catholic priests when he was 10 or 11 years old in 1990–91. The alleged abuse occurred while he was a student at St. Jean Baptiste Elementary School and a member of the local Catholic church. The lawsuit, filed in 2023, involved the Archdiocese of St. Boniface, the Red River Valley School Division and the estate of priest Léo Couture. The other priest, René Touchette, had previously been convicted of sexual offences in the 1990s and died in 2012. The settlement details have not been released, and none of the defendants admitted liability. The case was scheduled for trial in November 2027, but those proceedings will now be cancelled because of the settlement.
More Posts