Mainz/Freiburg (dpa/lsw) – A pastor who has since retired is said to have had indications of sexual abuse of acolytes by a colleague in Oberharmersbach (Ortenaukreis) and not passed them on. This is reported by the ARD magazine “Report Mainz” (Tuesday), which spoke to the pastor, Alfred Haas. Accordingly, the long-dead perpetrator had indicated the abuse in a private conversation with Haas. “I was very affected,” quotes Haas magazine. However, he did not pass on the information.
His first reaction was that the suspect should change location so that nothing can happen in Oberharmersbach. When asked if Haas wanted to cover up, he said “Report Mainz”: “Basically cover up too, on my part. I didn’t want a scandal.” When asked by the German press agency dpa, Haas confirmed his behavior without commenting further.
The case is about a pastor who worked for decades in Oberharmersbach and abused children and young people there. According to the Archdiocese of Freiburg, which is responsible for the community, he was never reported, but was transferred. The former Archbishop Robert Zollitsch has also been criticized. At the time of the incidents in Oberharmersbach he was the personnel officer of the archdiocese and was therefore responsible for the clergymen employed.
Zollitsch recently admitted mistakes in dealing with sexual violence in the church and asked for an apology via video. Actually, an abuse report should be published in Freiburg on Tuesday. In September it was postponed to April due to legal issues.
