Catholic Church
Investigation into pedocrime: Possibly 200,000 victims of abuse by clergy in Spain
© Oleksandr Latkun / Imago Images
For the first time, the issue of abuse in the Catholic Church in Spain is being addressed – with shocking results. The commission criticizes the behavior of the clergy.
According to a report by a commission of inquiry, more than 200,000 people in Spain may have been sexually abused as minors by Catholic clergy in recent decades. The independent commission published its findings on pedocrime in the Catholic Church in Spain on Friday.
The report does not give exact numbers, but the estimate is based on a survey of 8,000 people. Extrapolated, 0.6 percent of the 39 million adults in Spain said they had been sexually abused by clergy as minors. It was said that more than 200,000 people could have been affected. According to the information, the cases mainly come from the period between 1970 and 1990.
Report criticizes Catholic Church
The report also criticizes the behavior of the Catholic Church. Their response to cases of pedocrime by clergy was “inadequate”. Among other things, it is proposed that the state set up a fund to provide compensation to the victims.
Unlike Germany, France, Ireland and the United States, heavily Catholic Spain has not yet had an independent investigation of this kind. Worldwide, the Catholic Church has already been rocked by a series of sexual abuse scandals.