Salvos knowingly promoted abuser: report

The Salvation Army failed in its response to numerous allegations made against its officers, a royal commission report into child sexual abuse has found.

The report, released on Monday, found several allegations submitted to high-ranking members of the Salvation Army had not been investigated, while others had been mishandled and victims were left in the dark.

In one case, an officer rose through the ranks of the army despite admitting to abusing an eight-year-old girl.

The victim's mother previously told the commission she was "in disbelief" when Salvation Army officer Colin Haggar visited her in 1989 and said: "It wasn't that serious, I only fingered her."

Haggar admitted the abuse and was dismissed, but rejoined the army three years later and was promoted.

"The Salvation Army should not have promoted Colin Haggar to the rank of lieutenant-colonel in 2012," the commission found.

He was also appointed assistant director of Samaritan Services in 2013.

Commissioner James Condon, who is in charge of the army's eastern region, gave evidence that there was an attempt to keep knowledge of Haggar's abuse within the senior ranks of the army.

In other instances of abuse, the report found there was "a failing" in the Salvation Army's response to sexual abuse allegations and they "should have been dealt with more swiftly and seriously".

The Salvation Army, contrary to its policy, did not offer an apology to two victims in the months following former Envoy John Lane's conviction in 1996 for sexually offending against them.

In a number of claims processed by the army, victims were given less compensation than others but were not told this was because the army's internal investigations did not match their claim.