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Mal Byrne / Tindall Gask Bentley

Articles by Mal

Acts of contrition: Church and state in SA must put children first

A day of reckoning has come for the Catholic Church which will require a rethink of the sacrament of confession and changes to the law by the South Australian Parliament, writes Mal Byrne.

A lonely death in Adelaide's leafy suburbs

At a small and heartbreaking funeral in suburban Tusmore, Adelaide lawyer Mal Byrne says he grasped the full horror of the damage wrought by Australia’s immigration detention system.

Survivors of child sex abuse from the Victorian town of Ballarat tie ribbons to an Australian Catholic support centre in Rome. Photo: AAP/Lloyd Jones

After the royal commission, will churches and governments do the right thing?

There are already signs that governments and institutions will fail to respond adequately to the disturbing findings of the child abuse royal commission, writes Adelaide lawyer Mal Byrne.

State Govt closes the door on suffering abuse victims

Despite the huge profile given to the royal commission into the abuse of children in Australia’s institutions, how much has really changed? Adelaide lawyer Mal Byrne argues that institutional and government responses – including in South Australia – are letting victims down.