(CNN) After years of investigations and hearings, the sheer scale of child sexual abuse within the Australian Catholic Church has been revealed. Between 1950 and 2015, 7% of Australian priests were accused of abusing children, according to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse . The commission's findings provide yet more evidence of a global epidemic of sex abuse and cover-up within the church. From three separate data surveys and witness testimonies, the commission found 7% of priests belonging to 75 Catholic Church authorities were alleged perpetrators. They were more interested in protecting the image of the Catholic Church than they were in protecting children and believing victims."

Source: CNN February 06, 2017 05:36 UTC