Ireland Catholic Institutional Abuse? I don't get it?

The problem is that the Church focussed on the sin of the men involved (sins can be forgiven) rather than the crimes against the children (crimes need to be prosecuted). The Church granted absolution to the perpetrators for their sins, without facing up to the criminal implications of what they had done. The victims, being innocent of sin in this regard, got no help and their status as victims of crime was ignored,