Sinead O’Connor takes aim at Pope Benedict over church child abuse apology

London: Irish star Sinead O’Connor has attacked Pope Benedict over his recent apology for the child-sex abuse scandal in Ireland. The singer insisted Pope Benedict XVI`s `pastoral apology` on behalf of the Roman Catholic Church is too little, too late, reports The Daily Express. In an exclusive interview with the Los Angeles Times newspaper, she said: "He (Pope) starts by saying that he`s writing with great concern for the people of Ireland. If he was that concerned, why has it taken him 23 years to write a letter, and why did he or the last pope never get on an airplane and come to meet the victims... and apologise? "The letter sells the Irish (church) hierarchy downriver by stating again and again that the Irish hierarchy has somehow acted independently of the Vatican... The documents are there to prove that that`s a lie. "If you were the boss of a company and some of the employees of your company were known to sexually abuse children, you would fire them instantly. You would also go instantly to meet the people who had been abused and profusely apologise and offer your help in any way whatsoever to deal with this... That has never happened." Accusing the highest church officials of not publicly dealing with the growing reports of sexual abuse until 2001, she stated, "They knew back in 1987 at least that this was an issue... They knew so much that they took out an insurance policy. "There should be a full criminal investigation of the Catholic hierarchy of any country in which this (abuse) has been an issue. There should be a full criminal investigation of the Vatican. There should be a full criminal investigation of the pope." She also called for the Pope`s resignation: "The pope should stand down for the fact that he did not act in a Christian fashion to protect children, and for the fact that his organisation acted to preserve their business interests decade after decade rather than be concerned about the interests of children. " ANI