Church – Freiburg (Breisgau) – Freiburg abuse report only at the end of October – panorama

Freiburg (dpa/lsw) – A long-awaited report from the Archdiocese of Freiburg on cases of sexual abuse is expected to be presented to the public on October 25th. With this, “a first and essential step has been taken to bring as much clarity as possible to these dark sides of the history of the archdiocese,” said the acting chairman of the commission to deal with sexual abuse in the archdiocese, Magnus Striet, on Wednesday. These are not the first figures on the subject.

The archdiocese had previously used external experts to research sexual abuse using personnel files. From the beginning of 1946 to the end of 2015, 190 suspects were discovered, most of them priests – and at least 442 victims. In the course of the discussion, Archbishop Stephan Burger had reproached his predecessor and former chairman of the Catholic German Bishops’ Conference, Robert Zollitsch, a few years ago: Zollitsch, as the archdiocese’s personnel officer and later as archbishop, made mistakes in dealing with cases of abuse and in processing the he could not justify as today’s Archbishop.

The date of the publication of the new report is well after the 102nd German Catholic Day, which is to be held in Stuttgart at the end of May and will also be about how external processing of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church can be successful. Among other things, the abuse commissioner of the bishops’ conference, Bishop Stephan Ackermann of Trier, is expected on a podium.

According to the announcement, the Freiburg commission intends to draw up recommendations for the archdiocese immediately after the report has been handed over, in order to eliminate systemic causes of abuse as far as possible in addition to measures already initiated.

Only since July 2021 has there been an advisory board for victims of sexual abuse in the church in the archdiocese. The two men and two women, aged in their late 20s to 50, are said to be independent of the archdiocese. When the committee was founded, they declared that all issues – whether processing or prevention – needed the perspective of those affected. Her work includes, for example, looking at priestly training, structures that encourage abuse, and the question of what can be changed in the area of ​​church youth work to prevent abuse.

The Catholic Church has been dealing with abuse cases for years. In 2010, numerous offenses against children and young people came to light in a first major wave. Other dioceses are further along in the processing than Freiburg. The Archdiocese of Munich and Freising, for example, presented a sensational report in January, which also dealt with the future Pope Benedict XVI. went. Cologne Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, on the other hand, triggered a crisis in the largest German diocese in 2020 when he decided not to publish an expert opinion on how those responsible dealt with allegations of abuse and cited legal reasons for doing so.

In Rottenburg-Stuttgart, unlike in other dioceses, Bishop Gebhard Fürst appointed the Sexual Abuse Commission around 20 years ago. It is intended to investigate and clarify suspected cases. “In 2012, the diocese set up its own prevention department – also the first in Germany – which has since trained thousands of church employees accordingly,” said a spokesman. Work is underway to set up an advisory board for those affected. Furthermore, the subject of sexual abuse was also taken up in the processing of grievances in residential care in the 1950s and 60s.

Not least against the background of cases of abuse and how they are dealt with, Christians keep leaving the church. The Archdiocese of Freiburg, for example, still had around 1.76 million members at the end of 2020 – around half of the Catholics in Baden-Württemberg. That was a decrease of 35,827 compared to the previous year. More recent figures are not expected until the summer.

To date, 92 cases of sexual abuse have been reported in the Evangelical Church in Baden and the Diakonie. However, the number of unreported cases is likely to be significantly higher than the previously known number, said Oberkirchenrätin Uta Henke on Tuesday at a state synod conference in Bad Herrenalb (Calf district). In addition to the 92 victims, the names of 62 perpetrators are known. Some would have committed several crimes, said Henke. Others are not known by name.

© dpa-infocom, dpa:220427-99-62376/4

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