Victims of sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church should
receive compensation and the church cannot relinquish its responsibility
towards victims due to the lapse of time.
These are two of the
conclusions drawn by Wim Deetman after months of research into cases of
sexual abuse in Catholic institutions in the Netherlands.
The preliminary findings of the Deetman Commission were presented in The Hague on Thursday.
A number of victims of sexual abuse
within the Catholic Church spoke with chairman of the inquiry Wim
Deetman after the presentation of his report.
One of them, Mark
Klabbers, says the ball is very much in the court of the government with
regard to dealing with the complaints and providing help.
Many victims
have been very disappointed by the reactions by the church authorities
so far:
“You cannot expect people to go to the house of someone
who has systematically abused you for help. It is all about feeling
safe and having confidence. That is the first thing victims need. We
cannot automatically say to the church that we have confidence in it.
There is no reason to,” says Mr Klabbers.
Mr Deetman is “very satisfied” with the cooperation he
got from the church authorities. He appeals for compassion and sympathy
from the church for the victims; even though that is outside the scope
of the commission’s investigation.
“These are things that cannot be
changed. If you apologise, you have to make sure they are not just empty
words, because they do not take away the suffering. That is something
you have to work on.”
Wim Deetman hopes to present his final report in
November 2011. The commission is not looking into cases of sexual abuse
outside the Netherlands, even if it has been committed by Dutch priests.
This has not been included inside the scope of the commission, says Mr
Deetman.
Other recommendations are that the church
itself should not become involved in the handling and evaluation of
damage claims and that the victims should receive help as soon as
possible.
A total of 1975 complaints about sexual abuse within the Roman Catholic
Church in the Netherlands were submitted.
Over 1300 people contacted the
committee directly, 600 complaints were passed on via church
organisation Hulp & Recht (Help and Justice).
Mr Deetman believes
help for the victims should be organised as quickly as possible.
“Victims got in touch with us and told us their story.
We are grateful for that because otherwise we would not have been able
to get on. They also want to know what the effect of such a big inquiry
will be. However, there are also individual cases where people need help
and assistance. Some people want compensation. We have said that that
must take priority. We have to make thorough recommendations for the
inquiry to be credible,” says the chairman of the Deetman commission.
The report is very critical of the Catholic
organisation Hulp & Recht, set up by the church to help victims of
sexual abuse, the commission calls for far-reaching measures to be
taken.
The executive board of the organisation has since offered to
stand down.
Mr Deetman also says that any semblance of involvement by the church
authorities should be avoided. To guarantee this, an independent
organisation has to be set up for victims.
This organisation should
handle complaints, set up a procedure for compensation, initiate
disciplinary measures against priests and organise professional help.
There is a clear need for help among the victims, says Mr Deetman.
“Some people don’t want any money, others do. Some want
self-help groups to be set up. Talking with one another can help
enormously and ease the suffering. A centre for high-quality care should
be set up now. That can be done very quickly.”
Mr Deetman’s recommendations also include compensation.
“You have to have a clear procedure for this and you shouldn’t take too
long about it. It should be set up to include any new cases that come
to light. I hope that doesn’t happen, but you have to take this into
account for the future.”
Earlier this week, different groups of victims asked for a parliamentary
inquiry into the abuse. They had no faith in the church or the
commission which was set up by the church.
“We had no consultation, we didn’t ask what the church
wanted. If we did ask anything it was because we needed information,”
stresses Mr Deetman.
“However, I do understand the victims. Some of
them, many, have faced one disappointment after another for 39, 40 or 50
years. They feel they have been banging their heads against the wall.
And then the Deetman Commission comes along and expects them to have
confidence in it. That is not very realistic.”
Mr Deetman is “very satisfied” with the cooperation the
commission got from church officials.
He only asks one more thing:
compassion and sympathy for the victims.
SIC: RN/INT'L