Peter Isely, right, US spokesman for Ending Clergy Abuse, speaks to reporters outside the Archdiocese of Chicago on January 2, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois (KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI)

Chicago (AFP) – Advocates for clergy abuse victims on Wednesday demanded inclusion in a historic Vatican conference to address the crisis, as US bishops gathered in prayer near Chicago in advance of the February meeting.

The groups Ending Clergy Abuse (ECA) and Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) said they had sent an open letter to Pope Francis asking to be included in discussing reforms in the Catholic Church.

At issue was the very credibility of the pope’s conference, they claimed, and whether survivors would have faith in reform efforts.

“What we want is for this summit to be able to be taken seriously and to result in real, meaningful reform,” SNAP executive director Zach Hiner said at a news conference outside of the Archdiocese of Chicago’s headquarters.

Activists also demanded that two American cardinals step aside from their key roles in the Vatican event because they are alleged to have covered up abuse: Cardinal Blase Cupich, the leader of the of the Chicago Archdiocese, and US bishops leader Cardinal Daniel DiNardo.

“We’re asking the pope to do something very simple: put individuals to lead your summit that have not covered up for child sex crimes. Then, survivors and the rest of the world might have a glimmer of hope,” said ECA spokesman Peter Isely, a self-identified survivor.

The demands came two weeks after the top prosecutor in the Midwestern state of Illinois, where Chicago is located, revealed hundreds of previously undisclosed allegations of clergy abuse.

In a scathing report, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said church officials mishandled investigations and failed to inform law enforcement of all accusations. 

More than 500 additional accused clergy were uncovered by state investigators within months of looking into dioceses’ records, according to Madigan, far more than the 185 names previously disclosed. 

The scale of the alleged cover-up eclipsed the findings of a grand jury in Pennsylvania, which in August alleged more than 300 suspected predator priests and more than 1,000 victims had been concealed for decades. 

In announcing the February meeting to discuss the abuse crisis, Pope Francis urged bishops to “reach out and visit with victims of sexual abuse… to learn first hand the suffering that they have endured.” 

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