Colombia: justice obliges Church to publish a list of 26 priests accused of sexual assault on minors

These priests of the Archdiocese of Medellin had been “denounced” to the prosecution between 1995 and 2019. Justice accessed the request of a journalist who criticizes the Church for having covered certain facts.

Le Monde with AFP

The names of 26 priests having been the subject of a survey for sexual assault on minors in Colombia were published by the archdiocese of the city of Medellin, at the request of the justice.

This list, which includes the names of priests “denounced” to the prosecution between 1995 and 2019, was broadcast after justice has accessed a request for this sense of journalist Juan Pablo Barrientos, who is investigating pedocrime in the ‘Colombian Church.

“The majority of these priests (…) who raped children were suspended for a short period, then resumed their duties,” said the journalist in a video published on Saturday. The Archbishop of Medellin, M ^{gr Ricardo Tobon, assured that the Church wanted to be transparent (…) and show that there is no intention of concealment “.}

“an aggressive denigration campaign”.

in

In 2019, Mr. Barrientos published a book “Dejad that Los Niños Vingan A mí” (“Let small children come to me”), an investigation into sexual assault covered by the clergy in a large majority country Catholic.

The majority of the violence reported in the book were committed in Antioquia (North West) and the Archbishop of Medellin, capital of this very conservative department, is denounced for having covered one of the religious . The Church tried to prevent the publication of the book by legal actions, in vain.

In 2021, the journalist published a second investigation, “Este es El Cordeo de Dios” (“It is the lamb of God”), which reveals the scandal of a pedocriminal network in the diocese of Villavicencio, 120 km south-east of Bogota, involving 38 priests accused of sexual assault and rape on minors. At least six priests have served prison sentences for rape on a minor in the country.