Status: 09/29/2022 4:05 p.m
Former Bishop of East Timor and Nobel Peace Prize winner Belo has been accused of abusing boys for years. A magazine from the Netherlands had published reports from those affected. The Vatican imposed disciplinary measures.
The Vatican has imposed disciplinary measures against the Timorese bishop and Nobel Peace Prize winner Carlos Ximenes Belo after allegations of abuse in the past two years. Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said the responsible authority in the Vatican was informed of allegations against Belo in 2019. A year later, he was banned from contact with minors in East Timor. Belo’s administration and freedom of movement were also restricted. The penalty was tightened in November 2021.
money for silence
The Dutch magazine “De Groene Amsterdammer” previously reported that Belo had sexually abused several boys in the 1990s. Inquiries to Belo, the Salesian Order or the Vatican about the allegations have remained unanswered.
“The bishop raped and sexually abused me that night,” said a 45-year-old man who called himself Roberto and didn’t want to give his real name. Belo gave him money so that he would not say anything and would continue to do so.
A 42-year-old man said he was once molested by Belo at the bishop’s residence in Dili, East Timor. “I thought: That’s disgusting. I don’t go there anymore,” said the man, who called himself Paulo and also wanted to remain anonymous.
National hero and beacon of hope
There are numerous reports of similar cases, the newspaper said. The allegations date back to Belo’s time as head of the Salesian formation center in Don Bosco, before he became bishop in 1983. At the time, Belo was not only the powerful head of the Catholic Church in East Timor, but also a national hero and a beacon of hope for the people, Paulo said.
The bishop abused his position of power over boys living in extreme poverty. Out of fear and shame, they did not talk about the incidents. According to De Groene, he spoke to other people affected and to 20 people who had knowledge of the events: church officials, politicians, employees of non-governmental organizations and experts.
Nobel Peace Prize in 1996
Belo was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1996, together with future President José Ramos-Horta, for his work for East Timor’s independence.
The Nobel Prize committee particularly praised Belo for smuggling two witnesses to a 1991 massacre out of the country to testify before the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva while he sought a UN-brokered independence referendum. This brought independence from Indonesia in 1999.