Church abuse victims accuse President Seguro of lack of respect – Portugal Resident

Victims of sexual abuse within Portugal’s Catholic Church have rejected a meeting with presidential advisers after President António José Seguro appears to have declined receiving them himself. They have told Expresso that only the head of state can help address what they have described as an unjust compensation process.

After waiting months for a response to their request for an audience with President António José Seguro, the association Coração Silenciado, representing victims of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church, claims it has, for the first time, been refused a direct meeting with the country’s head of state.

Instead, members were invited to meet two presidential advisers – an offer thay have  declined, arguing that only the president himself has the authority and moral influence needed to address their concerns.

“We felt they were trying to patch things up,” António Grosso, a member of the association’s leadership, told Expresso. “The president did not show victims the respect of receiving them.”

According to Grosso, the association was informed last Friday that President Seguro could not grant an audience “at this time” and was instead offered a meeting on Monday with Ana Santos Pinto, adviser on religious affairs, and Cristina Neves Correia, adviser on health matters.

The group rejected the invitation, both because of the short notice and because it was not the meeting that had been requested.

“We asked for another date with the president, but received no reply,” said Grosso.

The association had hoped to present Seguro with proposals to overhaul the Church’s compensation scheme for victims of sexual abuse, arguing that the current system has failed the overwhelming majority of survivors.

Instead, it now plans to submit its proposals to parliament in September, after the summer recess.

Grosso said that only 57 victims have received compensation ranging from €9,000 to €45,000 despite the Vita Group, set up by the Church, having validated 512 testimonies.

“Only just over one hundred cases reached the Vita Group, and only about half of those had their rights recognised. That is far too few and deeply upsetting,” Grosso added.

The association believes presidential intervention is essential, arguing that the head of state can use the office’s constitutional “moral authority” to press for a fairer process.

The president’s apparent refusal follows earlier criticism by the association that he had remained silent despite repeated appeals.

Expresso notes in its latest story that the Public Prosecutors’ Union and the Portuguese Judges’ Association have also recently been redirected from requested meetings with the president to meetings with presidential advisers. They too have declined the meetings with advisers.

The Presidency of the Republic has declined to comment on this latest case, says Expresso. But last week it said that delays in responding to audience requests reflected an exceptionally high volume of requests during the first four months of António José Seguro’s presidency, adding that meetings with advisers are “normal and even desirable”, and that reports from those meetings are then submitted to the president before any decisions are taken (meaning before he decides whether or not to follow up on the initial meetings with meetings in which he becomes involved).

Source: Expresso