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Destroyed Souls – an installation by the artist Dennis Josef Meseg in Bonn in 2023. © IMAGO/Klaus W. Schmidt
There is trouble in the Catholic diocese of Limburg because of the appointment of a new abuse commissioner. The advisory board for those affected feels that it has been ignored, and Bishop Bätzing apologizes.
The appointment of a new representative for those affected by sexual violence in the diocese of Limburg has caused great discontent. The Advisory Board for those affected feels that it was ignored in the selection process and appears “irritated” in a statement published recently. According to the diocese, Bishop Georg Bätzing and Vicar General Wolfgang Pax apologized to the advisory board for the procedure.
Since September 1st, lawyer Klaus-Peter Ohlemann has been the contact person for those affected by sexual violence in the diocese of Limburg. He has been working as a lawyer for more than 35 years, with a focus on family and administrative law, among other things.
Sexual abuse
Die MGH study von 2018 has investigated sexual abuse in the Catholic Church in Germany.
In the diocese of Limburg Measures were then taken for processing and prevention. This includes the establishment of the advisory board for those affected and the abuse commissioner.
More information under dbk.de and gegen-missbrauch.bistumlimburg.de
There was no public tender. The selection was made by personally approaching possible candidates, according to the letter from the advisory board. They were looking for a “male lawyer”. People are irritated by the selection procedure, the lack of involvement and the setting of criteria for filling positions. These contradict previous recommendations and did not take into account the content-related criticism “repeatedly submitted” by the Advisory Board for those affected. In their statement, those affected demand that abuse officers must have a “professional background in the social-educational or psychotherapeutic field and experience in the field of dealing with those affected by sexual violence.”
The diocese “expressly regrets the failures in the selection process”. Bätzing and Pax apologized to the advisory board for those affected on Monday, a diocese spokesman told the FR. They suggested regulating when the Affected Advisory Board should be involved and with what authority. However, there was no agreement on the question of appointing the new representative. Further discussions should lead to clarification “so as not to burden future cooperation”.
