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People who endured abuse by Catholic clergy have expressed fresh optimism after their initial meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.

The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, stated that the Pope's choice to meet with them so early in his leadership sent a strong message about his dedication to tackling the problem.

Global Zero-Tolerance Approach Pushed

The organization is advocating for a global strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who admits to or is proven of sexually abusing a child. This policy has already been adopted in the United States.

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

"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is resistance," Hickey stated.

Legacy Issue

The new Pope, who assumed the position in spring, has inherited this persistent problem that has haunted the Church for many years.

Earlier attempts to address the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the institution and revisions to church laws to explicitly criminalize abuse.

Personal Connection

For Hickey, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, the drive for worldwide adoption of the measure is deeply meaningful. The Canadian activist shared they were victimized by a clergy member who was later moved between different parishes.

"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we aim to work with him," Hickey stated. "Both sides share the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."

Historic Meeting

Multiple members of the coalition, which includes victims and supporters from over thirty countries, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.

The discussion, initially planned for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to the representative.

The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a Catholic residential school for native youth in Canada.

They added the Pope was "tender" about their personal story and seemed "very humble, funny, and approachable."

"Survivors have long wanted a seat at the table and I didn't perceive like he was giving us lip service," they commented. "I believed like he was genuine, realistic, and receptive and keen to work with us."

Canon Law Reforms

The group is hoping that revisions to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.

They have spoken with specialists and compiled documents that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.

"He appeared engaged in looking at it," they noted.

Responsibility Emphasized

A recently released church-ordered report emphasized the "importance of a streamlined protocol for the resignation and/or removal of religious officials or staff in cases of misconduct or failure to act."

The report also noted that victims consistently emphasized the "critical requirement for church leaders and senior officials to be made responsible for inaction and concealment."

Path Ahead

Hickey revealed they informed the pontiff at the beginning of their discussion: "This is as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."

Following the encounter, they voiced optimism for progress.

"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a relationship and continuing to build that bond is a move in the right direction," they stated.

They added that they told with the pontiff: "Just because it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative ends - he valued that."