SNAP says church unduly influenced state Sen. Jim Sullivan

Sen. Jim Sullivan

WAUWATOSA — Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) questioned Thursday whether state Sen. Jim Sullivan allowed his Catholic faith to influence his legislative actions on a measure concerning child victims.

The Wauwatosa Democrat described the allegation as groundless.

The measure at issue is the Child Victims Act, a bill that would have made it easier for victims of clergy sexual abuse to file lawsuits. The now-dead measure, first introduced in 2008, would in part have erased the statute of limitations on civil lawsuits against child sex abusers. That could have led to a flood of lawsuits against several Wisconsin churches.

The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests alleged that the reason Sullivan opposed the measure was because he feared that his church would deny him communion, a sacred Catholic rite.

As proof, SNAP distributed a Dec. 16 e-mail that lobbyist Joe Strohl had written to a colleague. In it, Strohl wrote of a conversation he had with Sullivan the previous day about the lawmaker's opposition to the bill.

"As he said, 'he still takes communion every Sunday' and wants to be able to keep doing that," Strohl wrote.

Sullivan confirmed with The Associated Press that he made the comment, but said it was being misinterpreted.

"Never, ever has anybody ever threatened to withhold communion or any other sacraments from me or my family," the senator said.

He said he opposed the Child Victims Act because statutes of limitations are fair and important protections for defendants accused of having committed a crime decades earlier.

"You have to be able to weigh the needs of those seeking justice with the need to mount a vigorous defense," Sullivan said.

Strohl, the lobbyist and a former Democratic Senate leader, told AP he wrote the e-mail after a client had asked him to solicit Sullivan's stance on the Child Victims Act.

When Sullivan made the communion comment there was nothing in his tone or body language that suggested he was being threatened or pressured to oppose it, Strohl said.


Comment by "schmenz" :

"Where do I begin to comment on this amazing article?

Let's begin with the Holy Communion issue: Senator Sullivan should be denied the Sacrament absolutely, for his open support of both pro-abortion and pro-homosexual policies. He is a disgrace to the Church and as he receives this Sacrament unworthily so he shall be judged - as will the priests who give it him, knowing his actions.

The statements that he would be denied the Sacrament for voting on this victim's rights issue, and that he was pressured by the Church, are absolutely, positively ridiculous. Sullivan knows he would not be denied Communion for that, and so should the writer of the article. Since over 90% of the abuse cases involve homosexual preying on adolescent boys the real reason Sullivan is voting that way most likely has to do with his support of the sodomy lobby.

Sullivan is perhaps the worst mealy-mouthed wardheeler of the bunch. He wouldn't be influenced by any church, least of all his own."

Equatorial Guinea President Named African Union Head; Rights Groups Object

Equatorial Guinea’s President, Devout Roman Catholic Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, who has held power for more than three decades, was named the ceremonial head of the African Union, an appointment human rights groups said undermined the 53-nation bloc’s commitment to democracy.

Obiang’s election was announced by his predecessor Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika at a heads-of-state summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital, today. Under AU rules, the bloc’s political leadership rotates annually between Africa’s five geographic regions.

“We accept our role with humility,” Obiang told the summit. “Africa must assume, more than ever, a leading role not just on the continent but in the international arena.”

Obiang has ruled sub-Saharan Africa’s fourth-biggest oil- producer since 1979, when he seized power from his uncle in a coup. He won a fourth term in elections in November 2009, securing more than 95 percent of the vote. Groups including Human Rights Watch said conditions weren’t in place for a free and fair contest, an allegation Obiang denies.

A 2004 U.S. Senate investigation into money laundering found Washington-based Riggs Bank was holding as much as $750 million in accounts controlled by Obiang, his family members or government officials. Obiang says he is unaware of any public funds being diverted from the country and that allegations made against his government and family are untrue.

‘Disastrous’ Leadership

“Obiang’s leadership of Equatorial Guinea has been disastrous,” New York-based Human Rights Watch said in an e- mailed statement yesterday. “For the more than 30 years that he has been in power, Equatorial Guinea has been plagued by appalling human rights violations and corruption,” with vast oil revenue being “diverted to fund lavish lifestyles for the small elite surrounding the president.”

Only 10 countries ranked below Equatorial Guinea on Transparency International’s 2010 list of global corruption perceptions. Last year, Equatorial Guinea was ejected from the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, an organization of companies, governments and civil groups that aims to clean up the oil and mining industries, for failing to meet its guidelines.

Oil Revenue

Oil revenue has given Equatorial Guinea, with a population of about 840,000, Africa’s highest gross domestic product per capita. Even so, latest World Bank data shows average life expectancy is 52 years and 81 out of every 1,000 children die before the age of five.

The African Union and Africans, don’t deserve a leader “whose regime is notorious for abuses, corruption and a disregard for the welfare of its people,” Alioune Tine, president of the Dakar, Senegal-based African Assembly for Human Rights, said in an e-mailed statement today.

At a conference in Cape Town in June last year, Obiang committed his government to greater transparency on oil revenue, judicial independence and press freedom. He also pledged to invest billions of dollars in health and education.

Established in 2002 as a successor to the Organization of African Unity, the AU’s stated aims include achieving greater unity among member states, promoting peace, stability and development and raising living standards.