Alina says Church told her not to tarnish its reputation

Alina Obolewicz, who says she was sexually abused by Cardinal Henryk Gulbinowicz decades ago, has questioned whether Lithuanian society is prepared to put greater pressure on the Catholic Church and demand stronger action against such crimes, LRT reported.

People who have experienced sexual abuse by priests say they were told that priests were holy or that they should not tarnish the Church. After news of new law enforcement investigations was announced, only four people attended a related protest, highlighting what campaigners describe as the public’s failure to respond adequately.

Obolewicz said the abuse began during her first confession in a church confessional when she was 11. She said the priest asked her questions about boys’ sexual organs and whether she had touched or kissed them.

She said the priest continued speaking while moving something under his cassock, and that she later saw him masturbate. Obolewicz said she suppressed the experience, suffered nightmares and became afraid of men, particularly priests.

This summer, two investigations reached court. One priest is accused of allegedly committing sexual offences against children for 23 years, while another is accused of possessing child pornography.

Mykolas Sotničenka, a representative of the Archdiocese of Vilnius, said the Church was not only bishops and priests but all baptised people. More than two million people in Lithuania are baptised, according to the programme.

Psychologist Danutė Gailienė, a representative of the initiative group Svarbus reikalas, said the Church was a strictly hierarchical structure in which its leaders had particular responsibility.

We are not seeing an adequate response in Lithuania, Gailienė said. She said the response had mainly consisted of excuses and denials, and that those responsible had not shown sufficiently serious reactions.

Dominican priest Jokūbas Marija Goštautas agreed that the Church was hierarchical but said the issue concerned society as a whole. He said cases had become public more quickly than in the past and referred to France, where he lived for six years during a major public reckoning over abuse in the Church.

Rasa Karmazaitė, editor of the investigative journalism department at Lietuvos rytas, said society had the right to ask questions and demand equality before the law.

She referred to previous searches at the Archdiocese of Vilnius and at the home of its chancellor, where investigators were looking for child pornography that had reportedly been found on a tablet computer. Karmazaitė said that, in such cases, the Church had responded with excuses or calls to pray and trust in God to solve the problem.

The issue was discussed on the LRT television programme Ne taip paprasta.