SWITZERLAND
La Croix International
Malo Tresca
On December 5, the Swiss Bishops’ Conference finalized the establishment of a compensation fund for persons sexually abused by religious where victims are barred from legal action because of the expiry of the statute of limitations period.
The decision was announced yesterday before a handful of victims who gathered under the imposing arches of the Valère basilica in Sion for a “penitential prayer” service.“We wanted a tangible sign of recognition – going beyond pardon and prayer – of the moral responsibility of the Church, expressed in the form of financial compensation,” states Jacques Nuoffer, president of the Support Group for Persons Abused in a Relationship with Religious Authority (SAPEC).
The fund will compensate victims who address themselves to “contact points,” namely the ecclesial commissions in each diocese. These victims include those who have already submitted a request to the Commission for Listening, Conciliation, Arbitration and Reparation (CECAR), a body specially created in French-speaking Switzerland to offer them recognition and reparation.
“We want a neutral commission that is independent of Catholic Church authorities so that the latter do not remain on a ‘pedestal’ with respect to victims,” explains Nuoffer, who has worked since 2010 for the establishment of the commission. Its implementation follows an agreement that was reached at the end of 201 between the SAPEC group, Bishop Charles Morerod of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg and other parties, with the support of parliamentarians.
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