Dresden (dpa/sn) – Victims of sexual violence in the Catholic Church are calling for the state to be more involved in processing such cases. On the fringes of the German Bishops’ Conference in Dresden on Tuesday, representatives of initiatives brought up “truth commissions” and the participation of the state parliaments. “It’s a state responsibility and it has to be taken care of,” said Matthias Katsch from the “Eckiger Tisch” initiative.
“The Catholic Church cannot work itself out. The state has a duty,” Katsch put it in a nutshell. Since 2018, the church has repeatedly declared its willingness to work with the state on this issue. But the state and parliaments must also be prepared to do so. A “neutral authority” is necessary. The background to the statements is the view that cases of sexual abuse – often already statute-barred by criminal law – are primarily a matter within the church.
At the same time, the church was accused of a lack of clarification. “It needs pressure from outside, otherwise little moves,” says Katsch. It would also be too much to expect that those responsible should clarify their own misconduct or that of their confreres. “In my view, the church itself has definitely not recognized how important this topic is – although its members are running away in droves,” emphasized Gregor Mennicken from the initiative group “Reappraisal from below”. The church is doing much too slowly and is not a priority there.
At a press conference in the state parliament, a person affected also expressed his motivation for going public. He was silent about his abuse for 50 years, even his wife knew nothing about it. But now he wants to act under the motto “appear instead of leaving” and shake up as a member of the church. The church must show remorse and repentance. “The church must approach those affected and not the other way around.”
