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Bishops' conference struggles to effectively deal with sexual violence
In Poland, the independent examination of sexual violence in the Catholic Church continues to be delayed while the bishops discuss powers.
Bishops' conference struggles to effectively deal with sexual violence
In Poland, efforts to address cases of abuse within the Catholic Church remain a challenge. At a three-day assembly in Warsaw, Polish bishops discussed the structure and powers of an independent commission to investigate sexual violence against minors. Despite the certainty of the need for such a commission, the guidelines proposed by Archbishop Wojciech Polak were rejected. A key reason for this is that the data collected could potentially be used in civil lawsuits against church institutions, which worries the bishops. How kathpress.at reported, the specifications must now be revised, so that further coordination with the religious communities is necessary.
However, discussions about sexual violence in the church are not limited to Poland. In Germany, too, the topic concerns society and the churches. The Independent Commission for the Comprehension of Child Sexual Abuse has given more and more victims a voice and first captured public attention with the so-called abuse scandal in 2010. Loud reworking commission.de Those affected report cover-ups and silence, which makes it even more difficult to come to terms with the situation. The churches in Germany, both Catholic and Protestant, are sometimes divided in their actions and structures when it comes to prevention and processing. Those affected described that they lived in a climate of silence in which information about sexual assaults was often not passed on, even if the clergy were legally obliged to do so.
Since its inception, the Commission has collected hundreds of reports and hearings to obtain a clear view of the cases of abuse. The path to comprehensive processing in both churches is described as difficult, but requires comprehensible criteria and transparency in order to regain the trust of those affected. All of this comes at a time when churches are under increasing pressure to take clear action to combat abuse and take responsibility.