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Matthias Katsch, member of the Commission for the Study of Child Sexual Abuse (archive photo): Reports are representative of the many untold stories
Photo: Gregor Fischer / dpa
The Independent Commission for Dealing with Child Sexual Abuse has launched a new internet portal entitled “Stories that count”.
100 people who are now adults report what was done to them as children.
The descriptions deal with violence, sexual abuse in various forms, breaches of trust and helplessness.
The names of the victims from the Federal Republic and partly also from the former GDR were changed, but not the facts: assaults, beatings and rapes mainly by men in families, homes, sports clubs, schools, youth organizations and church communities.
The perpetrators were mostly biological fathers, stepfathers, neighbors, educators, carers, sports trainers and pastors - the victims mostly girls and young women, but also boys who were at the mercy of pedophiles.
Almost all victims experienced that they were left alone in the family and by the institutions.
Help sometimes came through later relationships and therapy.
»Give those affected a voice«
As a place of remembrance, the story portal makes an important contribution to the social processing of child sexual abuse, according to a statement from the commission: "In addition, the stories help to raise awareness of the consequences of sexual violence, the taboo on the subject and the stigmatization of those affected killing people.«
"I have decided to make my report available in the hope that I can use my experiences to help protect children better," says one of those affected, according to the message.
»And so that my past has meaning, does something positive for others.«
"We want to give those affected a voice and make their stories visible," says Matthias Katsch, member of the commission.
But not every affected person can or wants to talk about sexual violence in childhood or adolescence.
The biographical reports and experiences on the portal are therefore representative of the many untold stories.
The reports can be filtered according to the context of the crime, the decades from 1950 to the present, the Federal Republic and the GDR, and the sex of the victims.
The commission was convened by the federal government in 2016 and has already published several reports.
To date, almost 3,000 victims and eyewitnesses have come forward.
wit/dpa
