Chilean bishops Luis Fernando Ramos Perez and Juan Ignacio Gonzalez Errazuriz arrive for a news conference after a meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Friday. (Reuters Photo)VATICAN CITY: Thirty-four Chilean bishops announced their resignations on Friday over a child sex abuse scandal within the Church in Chile after three days of intense meetings with Pope Francis at the Vatican. The striking announcement comes after Francis summoned the bishops to the Vatican over the scandal that has come to haunt his papacy. Several members of the Chilean church hierarchy are accused by victims of ignoring and covering up child abuse by the paedophile priest Fernando Karadima during the 1980s and 1990s. On Thursday evening, Pope Francis promised "changes" to the Chilean church to "restore justice" following the private meetings with the delegation.

Source: Bangkok Post May 18, 2018 12:56 UTC