Cases Of Sexual Harassment Found At The Roman Catholic Church
Spain, 28th October 2023: In a shocking revelation from Spain’s National Ombudsman Angel Gabilondo, an 18-month independent investigation uncovered 487 cases of sexual abuse within the Roman Catholic Church. This investigation culminated in an extensive 800-page report submitted to the lower house of the Spanish Parliament. This inquiry, initiated by the Spanish Parliament in March 2022, focused on allegations of sexual abuse involving minors in the Catholic Church.
The report, released, disclosed that since 1940, over 200,000 minors have suffered sexual abuse within the Roman Catholic Church. Astonishingly, 0.6% of the over 8,000 adults surveyed admitted to having experienced sexual abuse at the hands of clergy members during their childhood. This distressing statistic implies that a staggering two hundred thousand individuals have been victimized since 1940.
Despite the church’s assertion that 927 cases of sexual abuse were identified through their complaint process, the investigative team revealed additional cases in their comprehensive report. In 2018, the Spanish newspaper El Pais conducted its own inquiry, exposing 2,206 cases and implicating 1,036 individuals since 1927.
These distressing revelations are not unique to Spain; similar cases have been reported in America, Europe, Chile, and Australia. In 2021, an independent commission in France reported that 216,000 children had suffered sexual abuse since 1950. This survey marks a significant milestone, as it is the first time such a high number of sexual abuse victims have been identified in Spain.
