Cricket Australia on Monday apologised to the survivors of child sexual abuse victims. The country's board has also stated that it is exploring other ways to help the victims further and urged the state and territories to join the National Redress Scheme.
CA Chair Dr. Lachlan Henderson, in a statement, labeled historic sexual abuse as an "appalling issue". Jamie Mitchell, a former Australia Under-19 cricketer alleged early this year that he was "sexually abused" by team officials during the tour of Sri Lanka in 1985. The cricketing body is also set to discuss the issue during its next board meeting.
"We can't change what happened but we need to do what we can to assist victims. On behalf of CA I want to apologise to anyone who has suffered sexual abuse while involved in Australian Cricket," Henderson said in a statement. He added that the Board is encouraging states and territories to sign up for the national redress scheme.
"We are encouraging all states and territories to join the National Redress Scheme and the CA board is currently exploring other ways that Australian Cricket can further help victims of abuse. While we now have a rigorous set of policies and procedures around child safety, we need to ensure we are supporting anyone who has experienced past abuse as best we can, Henderson added.
As per reports from Australian media, only western Australia has signed the National Redress Scheme.
