VATICAN CITY – Peter Saunders, member and active critic of the Pontifical Commission on the abuse of minors, has refuted the Vatican’s announcement that he was taking a leave of absence, insisting that he had heard nothing of it. “I was appointed by His Holiness Pope Francis and I will only talk to him about my position,” he said at a press conference.

 The Vatican had announced the decision in a statement on Saturday, saying that "It was decided that Mr. Peter Saunders would take a leave of absence from his membership to consider how he might best support the commission's work. However, Saunders - one of only two people in the 17-person Committee to have suffered sexual abuse -  responded that “I have not left and I’m not leaving.”

 "I was asked to consider my role or what my role should be with the commission," he said. "I did not make a decision to take or accept any decision on a leave of absence. I said I would reflect on what I would do."

 The “direction and purpose” of the Commission had been discussed in a meeting on Saturday, after Saunders told The Los Angeles Times that the group’s last meeting had been a “non-event” and that he doubted the panel would succeed in changing the church’s handling of abuse.

 Saunders was known for his open and stark criticism fo both the Pontifical Commission and of Pope Francis’ apparent dismissal of the gravity of child abuse incidences within the Church. “Our pope could do so much more to make things happen now,” he said. “It’s incumbent on a commission appointed by him to impress on him the need to do things now, not years down the line ... I don’t see movement, I don’t see action over an issue that they should be absolutely furious about.”

 The sex abuse victim had criticised the Cardinal George Pell, Vatican Minister of the Economy, for his alleged involvement in covering up abuse more than a decade ago. He called the Cardinal a “sociopath” for not having taken the necessary measures to defend children and for remaining “cold” to the suffering of victims and relatives. The Australian cardinal threatened legal action against him, and the Commission attempted to distance itself from what it called Saunders’s “personal views”.

 Saunders had also advocated action against the Chilean bishop Juan Barros, who was accused of covering up sex abuses on children committed by his mentor Fernando Karadima. Barros has denied the accusations, but on Sunday the issue was expected to be discussed by the Commission. Juan Carloz Crus, one of Karadima’s victims as a child, travelled to Rome on the weekend to present in person a letter about Barros to Pope Francis.

 The Commission on the abuse of minors was formed upon the request of the Pope in 2014 with the aim of preventing further abuses, but has been criticised for its failure to address specific cases.

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