The Portuguese Church created a month ago commissions in each of the 21 dioceses of the country to investigate and prevent sexual abuse committed in the country.
Almost 250 Portuguese Catholics asked in a letter sent to the Episcopal Conference of Portugal (CEP) an independent investigation into the sexual abuse produced in the Church because they consider the measures adopted “totally insufficient”.
“The bishops need to know how to listen better to what the laity tell them, and today they say that the National Commission that they launched is important but does not solve the problem of the absence of a serious independent national investigation on the enormous problem of sexual abuse. in the church, ”Nuno Franco Caiado, promoter of the letter, told Efe.
The document sent before the plenary assembly of the Episcopal Conference yesterday, Monday, and made public today, states that the rights of the victims and the sacred values of the Gospel violated are the only ones that must be taken into account.
It also calls for the Episcopal Conference to align itself with the guidelines of Pope Francis and to produce a “rigorous, comprehensive and truly independent national investigation with a period of time of 50 years.”
“We have to understand that these abuses may have occurred in Portugal and we would have to investigate,” says the promoter, who praises the situation in France and regrets that the bishops do not want to take the step so that the investigation of this “systemic problem” can take place. .
The Portuguese Church created a month ago commissions in each of the 21 dioceses of the country to investigate and prevent sexual abuse within the Church, although there are differences among the bishops on the need to investigate cases retroactively.
At the opening of the plenary assembly, the president of the Episcopal Conference, José Ornelas, promised to find out the “historical truth” about the sexual abuse committed in Portugal.
In addition, he mentioned the creation of a national commission to coordinate the work of the 21 dioceses with common procedures, something that journalist Jorge Wemans, another of the signatories, believes is insufficient, as he explained to Efe.
“The Catholic Church in Portugal can only regain the credibility it needs if it requests the constitution of an independent commission of inquiry. And if you commit yourself to providing full support to this independent committee, that is, providing access to all documents and people, you should consult and listen, “he said.
To make this possible, in addition to an independent investigation, Franco Caiado asks the Church for “humility” when it comes to recognizing the problem and taking the next step.
“The next step is to ask for help from all lay people, Catholics, the whole community, in a reflection on how to change the organization of the church and how to exercise power within them. Without these changes we are not going far in this aspect and in no other ”, he says. (I)
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