Canton reacts after allegations of abuse at Saint-Maurice Abbey
Published: Wednesday, Nov 22nd 2023, 19:00
Updated At: Wednesday, Nov 22nd 2023, 19:03
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Following media reports of sexual abuse by clergy at Saint-Maurice Abbey in Valais, the canton has set up a working group. Among other things, it is to propose quality assurance measures for the college of the abbey. The interim abbot, a teacher at the college, was suspended from teaching at the beginning of the week.
"The working group is tasked with assessing the impact of the revelations on the operation of the college and recommending measures to ensure the quality, continuity and safety of the institution," the canton wrote in a press release on Wednesday.
In other words, the working group is to restore confidence in the educational institution in particular. Its report is expected by the end of February 2024.
Since the signing of an agreement between the canton and Saint-Maurice Abbey in 2021, the management and operation of the college has been the responsibility of the state. "The working group will say whether the organizational form provided for in this document is still appropriate today," Valais Director of Education Christophe Darbellay (center) told the Keystone-SDA news agency.
Abbey never comes to rest
In a report on RTS television in French-speaking Switzerland, the interim abbot of Saint-Maurice was accused of sexual abuse, among other things. He is said to have abused a novice. The Greek and Latin teacher at the high school was suspended by the Department of Education "until the facts are clarified". According to the Valais Department of Education, the acts of which the churchman is accused are not connected to the college.
According to the RTS program "Mise au Point" broadcast last Sunday evening, nine priests are involved in cases of sexual abuse within the Abbey of Saint-Maurice. Most of the cases covered in the program took place between 1995 and 2005. In September, Abbot Jean Scarcella resigned after being accused in the Catholic Church abuse affair.
Saint-Maurice Abbey intends to comment on the new allegations of abuse at a media conference on Thursday. In a brief statement on Monday, it declared that it was cooperating "fully" with the legal and ecclesiastical authorities. The abbey shares the pain of those affected and regrets that the church could have involuntarily become the scene of such injustices.
Of the nine cases mentioned in the RTS program, only one is currently pending, three have been decided in the last 20 years, and five canons have been deceased for more than 15 years, the report continued.
Hardly any more spiritual teachers
The college has played a key role in the grammar school education offered in the canton of Valais since the former monastery school was converted into a semi-public educational institution around 200 years ago. Two years ago, the school came under state responsibility. The canton bought the school building from the abbey.
In the past, the majority of the teaching staff at the college consisted of clergymen. Today, of the 100 teachers working at the school, there are only three canons still teaching. Around 1,200 young people currently attend the school with the aim of gaining a school-leaving certificate.
©Keystone/SDA
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