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Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced fresh optimism following their initial encounter with Pope Leo at the Holy See.

The board president, who leads the anti-abuse organization, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so early in his papacy spoke volumes about his commitment to tackling the issue.

Global Strict Policy Advocated

The group is pushing for a global zero-tolerance policy that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of abusing a child. This approach has already been adopted in the US.

The Pope acknowledged that there is "resistance in some parts of the world" to this proposal, according to the representative.

"We were all being realistic when we recognized that there is pushback," they remarked.

Inherited Challenge

The new Pope, who assumed the role in spring, has inherited this longstanding problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for decades.

Earlier attempts to resolve the situation included an unprecedented meeting on paedophilia within the Church and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw abuse.

Personal Connection

For Hickey, who uses they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The Canadian advocate revealed they were victimized by a priest who was later transferred between various churches.

"We trust this will establish the direction for his papacy, because we want to work with him," they expressed. "We have the common objective, we want to eliminate abuse by religious officials."

Significant Meeting

Seven members of the organization, which represents victims and supporters from more than 30 countries, engaged with the Pontiff in his official residence.

The discussion, originally scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted to a full hour, during which the religious leader "primarily heard to us," according to Hickey.

The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a female survivor victimized at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.

They noted the leader was "compassionate" about their personal experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and very down to earth."

"Victims have consistently sought a seat at the table and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was sincere, realistic, and very open and keen to work with us."

Canon Law Reforms

The group is advocating that changes to canon law will facilitate the implementation of the zero-tolerance policy globally.

They have spoken with specialists and gathered materials that they plan to submit to Pope Leo.

"He seemed engaged in reviewing it," they noted.

Accountability Highlighted

A recent Vatican-commissioned document emphasized the "necessity of a efficient process for the resignation and/or removal of Church leaders or staff in cases of abuse or failure to act."

The report also noted that victims repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and major superiors to be made responsible for negligence and concealment."

Path Ahead

The representative revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a challenge for him to engage in a conversation as it was for us."

After the meeting, they expressed optimism for future change.

"We realise it's not something that's going to happen overnight, but at the conclusion, uniting and establishing a relationship and continuing to build that relationship is a step in the right direction," Hickey stated.

Hickey concluded that they shared with the pontiff: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I believe like we can change how the narrative ends - he valued that."