BERLIN: A report on sexual abuse inside the Catholic Church in Germany says 3,677 people were abused by clergy between 1946 and 2014, two leading German media outlets said Wednesday.
Spiegel Online and Die Zeit said the report they obtained — commissioned by the German Bishops Conference and researched by three universities — concludes that more than half of the victims were 13 or younger and most were boys. Every sixth case involved rape and at least 1,670 clergy were involved, both weeklies reported. Die Zeit wrote that 969 abuse victims were altar boys.
The report also says that the actual number of victims was likely much higher, according to the research by experts from the Universities of Giessen, Heidelberg and Mannheim.
The German Bishops Conference said in a written response a few hours later that it regretted the leaking of the report, but that the study confirms “the extent of the sexual abuse” that took place.
“It is depressing and shameful for us,” Bishop Stephan Ackermann said. He didn’t further elaborate on the findings of the report, but said the Catholic group would present the study as initially planned on Sept. 25 together with the authors.
Die Zeit wrote that researchers weren’t allowed to look at the original church files but had to provide questionnaires to the dioceses, which then provided the information.
In their conclusions, the researchers write that there was evidence that some files were manipulated or destroyed, many cases were not brought to justice, and that sometimes abuse suspects — primarily priests — were simply moved to other dioceses without the congregations being informed about their past.
The Catholic Church has been struggling with sex abuse by its clergy for a long time.
In 2010, the German church was roiled by a sex abuse scandal triggered by the head of a Jesuit school in Berlin who went public about decades-long sexual abuse of high school students by clergy. Following that, a whole wave of victims who were sexually abused by clergy spoke out across the country.
An investigation in the United States last month found rampant sexual abuse of more than 1,000 children by about 300 Catholic priests in Pennsylvania.
Earlier this week, the Vatican said it is preparing the “necessary clarifications” about accusations that top Vatican officials including Pope Francis covered up the sexual misconduct of a now-disgraced American ex-cardinal.
Also on Wednesday, the Vatican said it’s summoning the presidents of every bishops conference around the world for a February summit to discuss preventing clergy sex abuse and protecting children.
3,677 sex abuse cases in German Catholic Church, study finds
3,677 sex abuse cases in German Catholic Church, study finds
- German Bishops Conference regrets leaking of the report, but admits that the study confirms “the extent of the sexual abuse” that took place
- An investigation in the United States last month found rampant sexual abuse of more than 1,000 children by about 300 Catholic priests in the US state of Pennsylvania
German spy chief warns of Russia threat to 2026 regional polls
- Sinan Selen said hat Germany was especially in Moscow’s sights because it is a central logistics hub of the NATO alliance on the continent
BERLIN: Germany’s domestic spy chief warned Monday that Russia could step up sabotage, cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns next year when the EU’s top economy, a strong backer of Ukraine, holds several regional elections.
Sinan Selen, head of the BfV intelligence service, said in a Berlin speech that Germany was especially in Moscow’s sights because it is a central logistics hub of the NATO alliance on the continent.
Speaking later to AFP, Selen said about Russian disinformation campaigns that “we’ve repeatedly seen that elections play a very significant role here, and as you know we have several state elections in Germany next year.”
Russia is blamed by Western security services for a spate of drone flights, acts of sabotage, cyberattacks and online disinformation campaigns in Europe, which have escalated since its 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
“We are being attacked here and now in Europe,” Selen said in a speech marking 75 years since the founding of the BfV, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution.
“In its role as a logistics hub for collective defense and support of Ukraine, Germany is more heavily targeted by Russian intelligence services than other countries,” he said.
“Above all Russia, as a hybrid actor, is undoubtedly aggressive, offensive and escalating. Its intelligence services employ a wide range of attack vectors from its toolbox.
“A clear sign of a highly dangerous escalation is the preparation and execution of sabotage attacks in Germany and other European countries, for which the Kremlin is considered the primary instigator. There is no sign of any relief in sight.”
Germany next year holds five regional elections, including in the ex-communist east, where the far-right and Moscow-friendly Alternative for Germany (AfD) party hopes to make further strong gains.
Selen, speaking about hybrid threats, said that “every sector of society can be affected, and this will be especially true in the coming year.”
The course of the Ukraine war would also strongly influence the actions of Russia, which Selen said “can scale the intensity of its sabotage operations at will.”
Selen added that “this war of aggression is more than a struggle for Ukrainian territory, it is a litmus test in the ongoing systemic conflict between authoritarianism and democracy in a multipolar and complex world.”
