POLAND
Irish Examiner
Saturday, October 05, 2013
Poland’s Catholic Church has said it will not pay compensation to victims of priests who sexually abused children.
By Monika Scislowska
Rev Jozef Kloch said in comments aired by Polish Radio 1 that responsibility for compensation lies with the perpetrator.
Kloch was reacting to a €47,500 claim made by a 25-year-old victim against his parish and local church authorities after they failed to reach a settlement. The claim could now be taken to court, in what would be Poland’s first such case.
“The Church will not pay compensation to victims of paedophile priests,” Koch said. “The wrongdoer should do it.”
Earlier, Bishop Wojciech Polak, secretary of the Episcopate, apologised to the victims and also offered psychological and therapeutic support.
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