Bolivian Church admits to being "deaf" to the suffering of victims of sexual abuse

The Bolivian Catholic Church acknowledged Wednesday that it had been "deaf" to the suffering of victims of pedophile priests, following revelations in the press of dozens of assaults committed by a Spanish priest in the country.

The secretary general of the Episcopal Conference of Bolivia (CEB), Giovani Arana, admitted in a statement that the victims had "found a Church that remained deaf to their suffering," instead of "giving them the protection and care they deserved." "We are certain that we have participated, directly or indirectly, in the deep pain caused to innocent people who have been victims of sexual abuse," he added.

More than 80 miners

The Spanish newspaper El Pais revealed in late April that the late priest Alfonso Pedrajas allegedly abused more than 80 minors in Bolivia starting in the early 1970s. The diary had access to the diary in digital form of the prelate who died in Bolivia in 2009, at the age of 66. In it, the Jesuit priest says he "has hurt many people, too many" people, he writes. He also says he was protected by his superiors.

The priest had settled in the country in the early 1970s, working in several schools until a few months before his death. He allegedly committed most of his abuses at the John XXIII School in the central city of Cochabamba. This boarding school welcomed children from disadvantaged backgrounds and rural areas. Following these revelations, at least eight complaints were filed in Bolivia against priests, including Mr. Pedrajas and three other Spanish religious, Luis Maria Roma, Alejandro Mestre and Antonio Gausset, all now deceased.

Giovani Arana said that following the visit of a Vatican envoy, Spanish priest Jordi Bertomeu, it was decided to create two commissions: one to listen to the victims and the other to investigate "to determine responsibility and make visible what happened". In a letter to Pope Francis on Monday, Bolivia asked the Vatican to release all records relating to cases of sexual abuse by priests in the country.