Nuns linked to Lourdes Home orphanage abuse allegations absent from court due to health reasons
Sr Josephine Anne Sultana and Sr Dorothy Mizzi notified the court through their lawyers that they were unable to attend due to medical appointments
Two nuns implicated in abuse allegations at Lourdes Home orphanage in Gozo were absent from court on 18 November 2024 due to health reasons.
Sr Josephine Anne Sultana and Sr Dorothy Mizzi notified the court through their lawyers that they were unable to attend due to medical appointments.
They are scheduled to testify online at the next hearing, following a request by lawyer Lara Dimitrijevic, who represents the victims. The nuns were due to testify before Judge Mark Simiana, who is overseeing the constitutional case filed by victims Carmen Muscat and Rosanne Saliba.
The abuse occurred at the now-defunct orphanage between 1975 and 1984, with allegations against Dominican nuns Sr Josephine Anne Sultana and Sr Dorothy Mizzi under Mother Superior Sr Carmelita Borg.
READ ALSO: Abused by nuns: Victims describe childhood in Gozo orphanage from 'hell'
The victims of abuse at the Lourdes Home orphanage in Gozo have rejected the apology issued by the Gozitan church in 2008, calling it inadequate. Carmen Muscat, one of the survivors, criticises the apology as a generic media release and demands more recognition for the suffering endured.
On 15 January 2024, survivors Rosanne Saliba and Carmen Muscat testified on the abuse at a Church-run orphanage have described harrowing experiences of sexual abuse by clergy and savage beatings from nuns in court today. The two women testified in a Constitutional case against the State presided over by Judge Mark Simiana, in which they claim the State had done nothing to safeguard their rights or care at the orphanage
After the initial investigation in 2006 deemed the claims "unfounded," a subsequent inquiry by Cardinal Mario Grech revealed "inadmissible behaviour involving minors." The church issued an apology, but victims like Roseanne Saliba and Mary Borg feel it was insufficient and have voiced their anger over the lack of accountability, some of whom continue to work with vulnerable people.
The victims are taking legal action against the State for failing to protect them when they were minors, with the case now in the hands of the country’s highest court.
Their lawyer, Lara Dimitrijevic, supports their claim for justice, which they have long sought but never received.
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