Irish victims of child abuse have come to the aid of under-fire Guardian columnist Julie Burchill.
She was criticised by members of London’s Irish community for comments made in a column last month. Burchill attacked Catholicism because it “condemns contraception, abortion, divorce and the right of a woman to be a priest”.
London Irish co-ordinator John Twomey reported her to the Metropolitan Police, claiming that the article was an incitement to racial hatred.
But Patrick Walsh, of the group Irish Survivors of Child Abuse, said: “I know she is neither racist or anti-Irish.” He said: “We issued a statement last year in support of Julie because it seemed to us then that various Catholic interests in this country were attempting to shut her up on the issue of Catholic church terror of innocent children in Ireland. “Her recent article mentions divorce and the refusal of the Catholic church to recognise it. That is a vital issue.”
By Dominic Ponsford
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