Draconian crackdown on Catholic festival protesters no joke

Sydney

How do you offend a Catholic? No, it's not the opening line of a smutty schoolboy joke but a question being eagerly debated by the citizens of Sydney, surely one of the world's great bastions of secularism.

Less than a fortnight before the start of World Youth Day, a gathering of Catholic youth from around the planet, Sydneysiders have been warned that they face arrest and hefty fines if they do anything 'causing annoyance or inconvenience' to the 200,000 pilgrims expected to attend the event, which culminates in an evening vigil hosted by Pope Benedict.

Billed as a 'happy and positive celebration of youth', the six-day extravaganza is likely to be besieged by well-organised protesters incensed by the church's hardline views on homosexuality, abortion and contraception.

Victims of sexual abuse at the hands of Catholic priests have also threatened to picket the pontiff during his first visit Down Under - regardless of the consequences.

Chris MacIsaac, the president of victims' group Broken Rules, said the new laws were an insult to the many Australians still fighting for justice from the Catholic Church after surviving childhood abuse: 'It will anger a lot of people who are very frustrated they can't get anywhere with the church and now are losing their right to get out and tell the world.'

As he did during a recent visit to the United States, the Pope is expected to meet Australian victims of sexual abuse and issue a heartfelt apology for past wrongs. Neither gesture is likely to assuage those who oppose the church's prohibitions on homosexuality and contraception.