An investigation into systemic child exploitation in Churches in France have made some alarming revelations of the number of victims. Jean-Marc Sauve, president of the Catholic Church’s independent investigation committee, said on Tuesday that at least 10 000 victims have been abused by church since 1950.
Head of the probe commission says possible figure of victims is at least 10,000.
Sauve reportedly said that the number of victims estimated in June last year which was 3,000 was certainly an underestimate. “It’s possible that the figure is at least 10,000”, Sauve was quoted as saying at a press conference where he shared an update about the commission’s work. A hotline was set up in June 2019 for victims and witnesses to report abuses. It is reported to have received 6,500 calls in the first 17 months of its operation. Sauve told the reporters that the question before the commission was what percentage of victims have come forward and spoken about the abuse.
After repeated child trafficking allegations in 2018, the Commission was set up to look into and probe these kind of cases and nail the perpetrators.
In November 2018, after huge and repetitive child violence scandals, the Bishops’ Conference of France voted to set up an independent committee. Some of these reactions received mixed reactions from the victims’ groups, although others questioned the readiness and ability of French public prosecutors to present press charges. The Commission’s 20 members come from diverse backgrounds, including legal, scholarly and medical studies. By the end of 2020, the committee was due to produce its final report, but it had a new deadline of September 2021.
In May 2019, Pop Francis graduated with the obligation to report the same to the superiors of those who knew sexual harassment in catholic church. By the declaration each diocese in the world had to establish by June 2020 a structure that will allow clergy to disclose sexual harassment.
