According to an abuse investigation, dozens of new victims are now reporting

“There is a great need to speak up. Some people cry on the phone. Some are reporting for the first time the suffering they experienced decades ago,” says Vreni Peterer. The 62-year-old from Appenzeller, chairman of the IG for people affected by abuse in Catholic environments (IG Miku), knows the phenomenon from personal experience. She was raped by the village priest in her youth and only confided this story to someone else about 50 years later. Now she advises victims herself.

On September 12, historians from the University of Zurich presented a pilot study. In it, they document 1,002 cases of sexual assault in the Catholic Church from 1950 to the present.

Since then, the topic has been widely discussed in public. Many victims now dare to report crimes for the first time. So far, more than 20 people have contacted IG Miku alone. These are usually people who are directly affected, sometimes their family members. All newly reported attacks have expired and can no longer be prosecuted by the Public Prosecution Service, Peterer says.

It is quite possible that some will also tell their stories to researchers at the University of Zurich (forschung-verkehrs@hist.uzh.ch). On behalf of the Swiss bishops, the regional churches and the association of orders, they are conducting another investigation that is likely to reveal more cases.

In recent weeks, about 20 people directly or indirectly affected have also sought advice and support from Sapec, the counterpart of IG Miku in French-speaking Switzerland, says President Jacques Nuoffer. Some people also contacted the organization who had not been victims in a church environment.

In 2010, the issue of abuse hit Catholic Switzerland with full force for the first time. This year, 124 people contacted the registration offices of the six Swiss dioceses. Even now they are seeing increased intake. Since the publication of the Zurich study, at least 40 people have contacted the bishops’ reporting offices. Also interesting here: most incidents took place decades ago.

For example, in the diocese of Basel, nine new cases of alleged abuse occurred between 40 and 80 years ago, and three between 10 and 20 years ago. One reported event has occurred in the last ten years. In this case, the diocese is considering filing a criminal complaint with the public prosecutor.

At the end of 2016, the bishops established a compensation fund for victims of time-barred sexual crimes in the church environment. In doing so, the Catholic Church recognizes its responsibility to those affected. It is not a matter of reparations, but of gestures, “because money cannot take away the damage done and the hardship suffered,” as the guidelines say.

The fund is largely supported by the dioceses, with regional churches and religious orders contributing the rest. The Satisfaction Committee is operationally responsible for the fund. So far, it has paid out about R2.8 million to about 180 victims, most of whom have already reached old age. According to President Liliane Gross, the commission has rejected only three applications so far. The maximum amount is currently 20,000 francs; on average, those affected receive about 15,000 francs.

Now there are calls for more generosity. IG-Miku President Vreni Peterer is demanding that all those affected receive the maximum amount and that the church also reimburse all therapy costs incurred by the victims as a result of the psychological and physical injuries from the attacks they suffered. ‘I can see it in myself. A year of therapies, doctor visits, medication and inability to work has eaten up all the financial compensation,” Peterer told the “Sonntagszeitung”.

Liliane Gross shows support for the cause. When awarding a compensation contribution, she believes it would be right to take a more individual look at what uncovered costs, for example for doctors and therapies, the victims have incurred and also to reimburse them.

In response to the abuse scandal, Swiss bishops have announced a new national ecclesiastical court, which will consist of ecclesiastical and outside experts. The victims’ organization Sapec in western Switzerland welcomes the move in principle, but demands that the newly planned body be established by the Federal Council and staffed with secular judges and prosecutors. Sapec recorded this in an open letter to Minister of Justice Elisabeth Baume-Schneider.

“Extraordinary situations require extraordinary solutions,” writes Sapec. Most newly discovered cases have expired and are therefore exempt from civil prosecution. “But the perpetrators are still alive and continue to celebrate Holy Mass. This is unacceptable for the victims.” The Justice Department has acknowledged receipt of the letter but has not yet commented on the specific request.