FRANCE
20 Minutes
[Pedophilia in the Church: The four revelations of the program “Cash investigation” broadcast tonight. What is astonishing in this documentary is the silence around the priests faced with accusations of sexual abuse of children.
Mediapart reveals that 25 bishops, including five still in office, methodically covered for 32 years the perpetrators of pedophile acts.
Explanation: the denunciation passes after the law of God. “We have a duty of charity in relation to a brother priest. He must be given a chance to repent and make amends,” said a witness who wished to remain anonymous. In short, the church prefers forgiveness rather than legal action.
Geographical solution: moving the priest away from business. The church has found a way to stifle the scandals: to prevent priests who are guilty of sexual abuse from becoming entangled in legal proceedings. They move them to another diocese where the case is unknown.
The church assures that priests who have committed pedophilic acts no longer work in relation to minors. Cash investigation shows that it is a wishful thinking: Example with Father Didier, sentenced to six years in prison for sexual assaults on ten victims in the 1990s. When the journalists met him, he was still practicing in a parish in Lyon, in the daily contact of faithful of all ages. Same concern for Father Emmanuel, suspected of rape in Bertoua in Cameroon. MOved to Bologna, Italy, he lives in the community of St. John, in the same premises as a children’s theater education course. Priests and apprentice actors under the age of 18 meet in the corridors every day.]
Lucie Bras
Mediapart et la société de production Premières Lignes ont enquêté pendant un an pour comprendre comment l’Eglise française fait face aux affaires de pédophilie de ses prêtres. Silence, secret et mutations à l’autre bout du monde, les journalistes ont décortiqué ces processus grâce à une enquête d’un an. 20 Minutes a eu accès à ce documentaire en avant-première. Voici ce que nous avons retenu de l’émission diffusée ce mardi soir à 21h sur France 2.
La loi de Dieu plutôt que celle des hommes
Ce qui étonne dans ce documentaire, c’est le silence autour des prêtres concernés par des accusations d’abus sexuels sur enfants. Mediapart révèle que 25 évêques, dont cinq toujours en poste, ont méthodiquement couvert pendant des années 32 auteurs d’actes pédophiles.
Explication : la dénonciation passe après la loi de Dieu. « Nous avons un devoir de charité par rapport à un frère prêtre. Il faut lui donner une chance de se repentir et de faire amende honorable », explique un témoin qui a souhaité rester anonyme. En bref, l’Eglise préfère le pardon plutôt que l’action en justice.
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