French clergy sexually abused more than 200,000 children over the past 70 years, a major investigation released on Tuesday found, and its authors said the Catholic Church had turned a blind eye to the 'scourge' for too long.
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An independent inquiry into alleged sex abuse of minors by French Catholic priests, deacons and other clergy has found about 216,000 victims from 1950 to last year, a “massive phenomenon” that was covered up for decades by a “veil of silence.”
The landmark report, released yesterday after two-and-a-half years of investigations, follows widespread outrage over a string of sex abuse claims and prosecutions against Church officials worldwide.
When lay members of the Church, such as teachers at Catholic schools are included, the number of child abuse victims climbs to 330,000 over the seven-decade period.
“These figures are more than worrying, they are damning