Ezzati's resignation came after he was placed under criminal investigation in the country's spiralling church sex abuse and cover-up scandal.

Spanish-born Capuchin friar and current bishop of Copiapo, Chile, Monsignor Celestino Aos Braco will replace Ezzati in the interim.

Ezzati, 77, is one of the 33 Chilean bishops who all offered their resignation to Francis last May amid accusations of cover-ups of sexual abuse by priests.

To date, Francis has accepted the resignations of eight bishops.

Ezzati is perceived as responsible for years of silence regarding 251 alleged crimes.

He denies that he had led a cover-up.

"I can say, with my head held high, that all the complaints that have reached the complaints office that I created in 2011 have been investigated, or are being investigated", he says.

"It's not enough to say that I have covered up (abuse), you have to prove it."

Ezzati had been linked to at least three cases of cover-ups.

One involved alleged abuse committed by former archdiocese chancellor Oscar Munoz who was in charge of the church's sexual abuse investigation files, and is currently under criminal investigation and under house arrest.

The Chilean abuse cases stretch back to the 1940s with the most recent being that of a homeless man who claims to have been drugged and raped by a priest in a dormitory inside the Cathedral of Santiago in 2015.

The accuser told the police he returned once to the Cathedral, where Ezzati hears confession from time to time, to tell him his story. He said he received a hug from the archbishop and was given the equivalent of $45 in Chilean pesos by another priest.

When asked about the homeless man, Ezzati told a local television station early this month: "I don't know him."

Victims rights activists say Francis's acceptance of Ezzati's resignation is a positive step.

"Cardinal Ezzati represents everything that we have fought against for years, especially the culture of abuse and cover-up," said Juan Carlos Cruz, James Hamilton and Jose Andres Murrillo in a statement.

The three are abuse survivors who have helped lead a campaign pressuring the Vatican to take action.

Source

• South China Morning PostImage:
• LA Times
• Daily Sabah

Cardinal Ricardo Ezzati says Barros, who allegedly covered up abuse of minors, should 'without a doubt' resign.

He also says he would not judge whether Barros actually had covered up abuse by Fr Fernando Karadima.

"I'm not a judge" who can say if Barros in fact covered up or not.

Baross's diocese of Osorno released a statement on Thursday saying he has some "health difficulties," while reiterating that he's "permanently available to the directions of the Holy Father."

No details were given regarding his condition.

Last week Pope Francis admitted 'grave mistakes' in his handling of the abuse crisis.

After initially defending Barros and saying he had been slandered, Francis appointed Vatican-based sexual abuse investigator Archbishop Charles Scicluna to investigate the matter.

Scicluna went to Chile to meet with abuse victims and clergy to find out whether Barros did have a case to answer.

After reading Scicluna's 2,300-page report, which included the testimony of 64 individuals, Francis changed his mind about Barros.

He said the report caused him "pain and shame" and he apologised to everyone he offended by his earlier stance.

He acknowledged he made "serious errors of assessment and perception ... especially due to lack of truthful and balanced information."

Ezzati says Francis was "deceived" with the information given to him about Barros.

He says it is "a very serious fault to have misinformed the Holy Father," and noted he hadn't "deceived anyone" himself.

In his opinion the bishop's situation should have been resolved "years ago."

Source

• Christian Today
• The Tablet
• CruxNow
• Image: Alchetron