Olekas rejects call for independent Church abuse inquiry

Seimas Speaker Juozas Olekas said Friday there was no need for an independent investigation into sexual crimes in the Catholic Church, LRT reported after his meeting with Gintaras Grušas, head of the Archdiocese of Vilnius.

Olekas said the Church would receive consultations from institutions including child rights specialists. He said attention should currently focus on the work of the judges and on a prosecutor’s investigation.

“What matters most to us is having confidence that these investigations are being conducted without anything being concealed,” Olekas said. He added that he placed great hope in the prosecutor’s investigation, which he said should establish whether information about the alleged crimes existed and when and to whom it was provided. According to Olekas, Grušas said the information was new.

Olekas stressed that sexual abuse was not only a Church-related issue, recalling that former Seimas member and Conservative politician Kristijonas Bartoševičius had been convicted of sexual crimes against minors.

“I care that throughout Lithuania, regardless of a person’s profession, any network in which someone covers up something is dismantled, and that nobody can hide either under a cassock or under a lawyer’s robe,” Olekas said.

The speaker also said he had asked Prosecutor General Nida Grunskienė to provide statistics on the professions of people convicted of sexual crimes last year.

Grušas answered media questions about the scandal in person for the first time earlier this week. He has faced criticism for opposing an independent investigation into abuse in the Church.

On Friday, Grušas said about 600 people in the Church had completed special training on sexual harassment. He said greater attention would be given to young people, prevention and creating a safe environment.

“Yes, the problem exists in the Church, but the largest share of these crimes takes place in close environments,” Grušas said.

He said a system encouraging people to report misconduct was already beginning to work. Addressing calls for an independent investigation, Grušas said there were more urgent priorities and that examples from other countries did not necessarily apply to Lithuania.

“It takes time and preparation. At present, it is important that we make efforts to prevent cases and that anyone who sees something speaks up,” Grušas said, adding that he hoped trust in the Church could be restored.

LRT reported that prosecutors sent cases involving two priests who worked in areas around Vilnius to court this summer. One defendant, Tadas Švedavičius, was ordained in 2001 and served in southeastern Lithuania, including Šalčininkai, Rūdiškės, Paluknys and Kalesninkai. He is suspected of committing the crimes over 23 years, with young children and other minors among the alleged victims.