The trial has been adjourned for three months to enable computer experts to recover deleted email, text and WhatsApp messages between some of the accused.

Francesca Chaouqui, a pregnant former PR adviser to the Vatican and one of the accused, has been granted the right to call as witnesses Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Archbishop Konrad Krajewski, and Cardinal Santo Abril y Castello.

Chaouqui has been accused of conspiring with Spanish priest Lucio Vallejo Balda and his assistant Nicola Maio, to leak secret documents they had access to as members of a commission appointed by Pope Francis to spearhead a financial clean-up shortly after his election in 2013.

The two journalists on trial, Gianluigi Nuzzi and Emiliano Fittipaldi, have published books based on the documents at the heart of the trial.

All five accused have been prosecuted under anti-leaks legislation, which could see them receive prison terms of between four and eight years.

The Vatican has been criticized by press freedom groups for pursuing the prosecution of the two journalists, who say they were only doing their jobs by revealing problems that believers and the broader public have a right to know about.

Sources

AFP/Yahoo News
The Irish Times
ANSA
Image: ANSA

He said the Church was working to improve its processes to help whistleblowers.

"I always think there's room for improvement," he said.

"I do think that one of the things that we want to do together as a community and Church is really to identify how we can do things better."

Archbishop Hart acknowledged that the Church was too slow to act in the past when dealing with paedophile priests.

He admitted that in one case the Church took 18 years to de-frock a priest, but it was "better late than never".

He said the Church was restricted by the fact that the law had to be changed and by the priest being in prison.

Archbishop Hart also admitted that one of his predecessors, Archbishop Sir Frank Little, had covered up abuse reports.

"Archbishop Little kept all these things to himself and there were no records," Archbishop Hart said.

Pressed on whether there had been a cover-up, he said: "Well I have to agree with that."

He added: "The only person who's ultimately responsible is the archbishop at the time.

"We were too slow to realise what was going on. These awful criminals are secretive and cunning."

He said he believed Archbishop Little simply couldn't believe a priest could do such a thing.

Archbishop Hart admitted that the Church had been too keen to look after itself when instructing that complaints remain confidential.

"The question of confidentiality of these matters was probably kept in one sense too much in that the Church was too keen to look after herself and her good name and not keen enough to address the terrible anguish of the victims," he said.

Questioned about compensation for victims, Archbishop Hart said he believed the payments the Church made were generous when compared with what the state paid.

Sources:

ABC News

Sydney Morning Herald

The Australian

Image: ABC News