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Evidence of a church cover-up of sexual abuse by a Capuchin monk in the Swiss diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg has been discovered, forcing the bishop to apologise for the Church's "lack of courage and lack of transparency" in dealing with the matter. On 20 January, the head of the diocesan judicature, Fr Nicolas Betticher, admitted in an interview in Le Matin Dimanche that the diocese had been aware that an unnamed Capuchin monk had abused "at least one child" in Fribourg since 1989, but had never informed the civil authorities. Instead the diocese had moved the monk to France. "It hurts me to speak of a ‘tacit agreement' but that is what it was at the time," Fr Betticher said. Fr Ephrem Bücher, spokesman for the Capuchin order in Switzerland, admitted in an interview with Radio Suisse Romande that his order had agreed to the cover-up at the time and therefore shared the blame. At the end of last year, a French journalist found that the monk had since abused another child in France but had been living in a Swiss monastery since 2005. He has since admitted his guilt. At a press conference on 1 February, the Bishop of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg, Bernard Genoud, apologised to the victims and for the Church's failures of courage, transparency and "communication". "We must improve the flow of communication between the individual dioceses and the world Church," he emphasised. He revealed that his diocese had notified the authorities of two more unnamed priests suspected of paedophilia. Meanwhile it has come to light that a 45-year-old Catholic priest from Fribourg committed suicide on 3 February just two days after his case was referred to in a press conference. Eight years ago the unnamed priest was accused of and admitted sexually abusing a minor in the 1980s, but proceedings had been stayed because of the time lapse. The priest had returned to work in a parish. Bishop Genoud was questioned about this priest at a 1 February press conference but said that the priest had no contact with children.  |
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