“The complicity of the hierarchy, together with the enormity of the numbers and vast geography of these crimes, should lead us to consider that we are facing a crime against humanity carried out by a political-religious organization,’’ Domolo told a news conference before the victims met, his delivery bearing the cadence of a homily.
“With this gathering, we want to ask civilian justice to do its duty in full freedom and truth, without being intimidated by the clerical culture.’’
Several dozen victims and family members came to the Verona gathering, which organizers hope will help isolated victims to know they are not alone and persuade an Italian public reluctant to believe priests and nuns could have committed such crimes.
The meeting was held opposite Verona’s Roman Colosseum.
Another will be held in Rome at the end of October, but Verona was chosen for the first gathering because it is the home of a school for the deaf where 67 former students have alleged suffering sexual abuse, pedophilia, and corporal punishment from the 1950s to early 1980s. About 40 former victims inquired by e-mail, but many are still reluctant to come forward, organizers said.
The Vatican has been reeling for months as thousands of victims around the globe have spoken out about priests who molested children, bishops who covered up for them, and Vatican officials who turned a blind eye to the problem for decades. In the latest admission, hundreds of victims came forward in Belgium with tales of horrific abuse linked to at least 13 suicides.
While Italian bishops have acknowledged 100 sexual abuse cases that warranted church intervention in the last decade, victims believe the true number in Italy is much higher because the reluctance to speak out in Italy is especially strong.
“This gathering is fundamental because we live in a social situation in which the presence of the Catholic church reduces the possibility of talking about the situation,’’ Domolo said. “They do it all over the world, but in Italy even more. That we are just now having the first gathering of victims indicates that only in the recent months is something exploding in Italy.’’
Domolo, 45, said he had been a victim of a priest from age 8 to 12, and that he was forced to confess “as if I had sinned.’’
