The constitution of the body that will replace the Independent Commission for the Study of Sexual Abuses against Children in the Portuguese Catholic Church is an expected decision of the Plenary Assembly of the Portuguese Episcopal Conference (CEP), which begins next Monday, April 17, in Fatima.
On March 3, the Portuguese bishops, after a meeting to analyze the Independent Commission's report, announced their availability to create "a specific group, which will be articulated with the National Coordination Team of the Diocesan Commissions for the Protection of Minors and Vulnerable Adults". », which is led by the former Attorney General of the Republic José Souto Moura.
The Observador newspaper said today that psychologist Rute Agulhas, who is part of the Commission for the Protection of Minors and Vulnerable Adults of the Patriarchate of Lisbon, will be the name indicated by the CEP presidency to be voted by the episcopate for the leadership of the new body.
The Independent Commission led by child psychiatrist Pedro Strecht validated 512 of the 564 testimonies received, pointing, by extrapolation, to a minimum number of victims of around 4.815.
25 cases were reported to the Public Prosecutor's Office, which led to the opening of 15 investigations, of which nine have already been archived, six remaining under investigation.
These testimonies refer to cases that occurred between 1950 and 2022, the period covered by the commission's work.
Following these results, some dioceses have cautiously removed some priests.
The Plenary Assembly of the episcopate, which will take place between Monday and Thursday, in Fátima, will also be marked by the elections for the CEP bodies for the next three years.
In recent days, there have been some news that the current president of CEP José Ornelas, bishop of Leiria-Fátima, has not yet decided whether he is available to be a candidate for a new term.
The wear and tear caused by three years of office marked by the pandemic and the situation of sexual abuse in the Church will be the basis for José Ornelas' eventual non-reelection.
If he is not elected for a new term, it will remain, however, as having been under his presidency that the CEP decided to create the Independent Commission which, over the course of a year, collected the testimonies of alleged victims of abuse within the Church , in what was seen as a decisive step towards facing the problem head on.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, at 11:00 am, in the Basilica of the Most Holy Trinity, in Fátima, the bishops will celebrate the Eucharist, in the context of the national day of prayer for victims of "sexual, power and conscience abuse in the Church".
This moment of public apology to the victims had already been announced by the CEP, on 3 March.
The preparation of the World Youth Day, scheduled for the beginning of August in Lisbon, with the expected presence of the Pope, will also be on the table of works of the Portuguese Catholic bishops next week, in Fátima, as well as some nominations for the various episcopal secretariats and commissions.
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