In Portugal, over 70 years, nearly 5,000 children were sexually abused by priests – the results of the investigation
Over the past 70 years, at least 4,815 children have been sexually abused by members of the Portuguese Catholic Church, mostly priests. This is stated in the report of the commission investigating sexual harassment and violence in the church, Reuters reports. The commission itself calls these results the “tip of the iceberg.” Child psychiatrist Pedro Strecht, who chaired the commission, said the figure was the “absolute minimum” of victims of sexual abuse by priests in Portugal since 1950. Photo: Hasenonkel/Depositphotos Most of the rapists (77%) were priests, and most of the victims were boys. According to Strecht, children were abused in Catholic schools, churches, priests’ homes, etc. Most of the sexual abuse happened when the children were 10-14 years old. The youngest victim was only two years old. Jose Ornelas, head of the Bishops’ Conference, was present at the presentation of the report, he said that “the church is ready to take appropriate measures.” Last year, the Portuguese Catholic Church was rocked by cases of alleged cover-ups of sexual abuse, particularly by bishops who continue to serve. The commission said it was preparing a list of accused priests who are still working. The Portuguese commission began its work in January 2022 after it was reported in France that about 3,000 priests and religious workers had committed sexual acts against 200,000 children. Allegations of violence come from people of various origins, from all regions of the country, as well as from Portuguese citizens living in other countries in Europe, Africa and the Americas. The commission spoke with more than 500 victims, analyzed historical church documents and interviewed bishops and other clergy. 25 testimonies heard by the commission were sent to the prosecutor’s office for investigation. All others were committed more than 20 years ago, and legal proceedings cannot be initiated by the statute of limitations. The commission is advocating a change in the law to allow prosecutions for historic crimes committed 30 years ago. The commission, which calls itself independent, was funded by the Catholic Church. In December 2021, Strecht said that if the church intervened in the commission’s activities, he would be the first to leave it. Read also: High-ranking conservative Catholic Cardinal Pell, who was tried for pedophilia, died
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