Archbishop Charles Scicluna heaped praise on investigative journalism which exposed clerical child abuse and gave the Church the opportunity to tackle the problem and make amends.

“Thanks to the media for their interest in this topic, not only from a journalistic point of view but for so many investigative stories that brought this topic to where it should belong.

“Journalists became part of the solution,” he told a press conference at the Vatican.

Pope Francis has called a summit on preventing clergy sex abuse. The meeting, with almost 200 participants, will take place between Thursday and Sunday.

The organisers will meet a dozen abuse victims who have gathered in Rome to protest about the Catholic Church’s response to the crisis and demand an end to decades of cover-up by Church leaders. The victims will not address the summit but will meet organisers on the eve to discuss their aspirations and expectations.

Mgr Scicluna, the Vatican’s leading sex crimes investigator and an organiser of the meeting, said the summit will focus on the key aspects of dealing with the crisis: responsibility, accountability and transparency.

Journalists became part of the solution

“We need to come together to make the church a safe place. The Church is a no-go area if you’re not going to be responsible [for your actions],” Mgr Scicluna told journalists.

Asked whether there was still omertà in the Church when dealing with clerical child abuse, as he said a few years ago, Mgr Scicluna replied: “Silence is a no-go. Whether you call it omertà or state of denial, it’s still a no-go. Whether it’s criminal or malicious complicity and a code of silence due to the trauma, we need to move away from it.”

Asked why the summit was focusing on minors and not on wider clerical abuse, including on vulnerable adults, particularly seminarians, Mgr Scicluna said bishops will be discussing all misconduct and that follow-ups will be of essence.