Pope Francis confirmed a clerical abuse of nuns and added that he believes the abuse is still going on, BBC reported on Wednesday. The pontiff publicly acknowledged for the first time that thousands of nuns were sexually abused, including one case where sisters were reduced to “sexual slavery”.
The final press conference of the three-day papal visit to the United Arab Emirates has resulted in the unexpected confession. Pope Francis admitted that many nuns are facing sexual abuse and even the sexual slavery around the world. While returning to the Vatican from the UAE, the pontiff told journalists: “It’s not that everyone does this, but there have been priests and bishops who have.”
According to the head of the Roman Catholic Church, the unacceptable behaviour is continuing because it’s not like once you realise it that it stops. “It continues. And for some time we’ve been working on it,” the pontiff added and promised the Vatican will start to do something more for the guarantee the safety for all individuals who decided to dedicate his or her life to the Roma Catholic Church.
However, when asked if there was a universal approach being formulated to deal with abuse of women in the church by priests, the pontiff implied that at the moment incidents were being dealt with on a case-by-case basis. “There are cases, usually in new congregations and in some regions more than others,” he said. “We’re working on it.”
