The Association of Girl Scouts has had its own history examined for sexual violence. One result of the study: When cases were discovered at all, the focus was not on protecting the victims.
In the Association of Boy Scouts (BdP) in Germany, there were at least 103 victims of sexual violence from 1976 to 2006. 36 people are accused of the crimes. This is the result of an investigation into sexual violence at the BdP that has now been presented. This was carried out by the Munich Institute for Practical Research and Project Consulting (IPP) and the Berlin “Dissens – Institute for Education and Research”.
If one also includes acts that could not be assigned to the association or the exact investigation period, the number increases to 149 affected people and at least 60 accused, the report continues. This is the case, for example, if plural forms were used in the surveys regarding the perpetrators and victims that could not be clearly assigned. It can also be assumed that there is a large number of unreported crimes that have not been reported.
The final report “Borderless Places – Sexual Violence in the Association of Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts 1976 to 2006” was presented to the press in Munich.
Dealing with victims “characterized by ignorance”
The crimes recorded in the study took place primarily in the 1980s and 1990s. According to the researchers, boys and girls were equally affected by sexual violence. However, the perpetrators are almost exclusively male. “Two prototypes” emerged: on the one hand, the older, adult scout, and on the other hand, the teenager or young adult who uses his position as a leader in the group to sexually exploit younger people.
The researchers have identified, for example, a lack of control and guidance among young leaders, power asymmetries, strong loyalty of adolescents to their scout group and the lack of discussion of sexuality and sexual violence as structural risk factors.
Such acts have been uncovered again and again, but “no sustained action has been taken against them,” said IPP researcher Peter Caspari. The way the BdP dealt with those affected was “characterized by ignorance”. “The interventions were perpetrator-oriented.” The association has massively overestimated itself when dealing with the issue for decades.
BdP apologizes
The current BdP federal leadership commented on this after the presentation of the study results: “We would like to apologize from the bottom of our hearts,” said federal chairwoman Annika Schulz. If those affected want to report criminally relevant cases that are not time-barred, the BdP Federal Association offers its support.
According to the BdP, this is the first such investigation in Germany that relates to a youth association. The federal government’s abuse commissioner, Kerstin Claus, spoke of an important signal that should serve as a model for other youth associations to come to terms with the situation within their own ranks. “For the first time, this study shows how power imbalances, rankings and misunderstood loyalties in youth organizations were exploited, especially by very young perpetrators – and how this loyalty still makes it difficult for the Boy Scouts to come to terms with it today,” she said.
The BdP is an interdenominational and non-partisan association. It has around 30,000 members in Germany. In 2016, the association decided to have its own history examined with regard to sexual violence. The IPP in Munich and the “Dissens – Institute for Education and Research” conducted 56 qualitative interviews with 60 people. These included 26 people affected and 22 contemporary witnesses and experts. Material from various archives of the association was also viewed.