Report links half of Dutch cardinals and bishops to abuse

Pope Francis shows a crucifix during the Angelus noon prayer he delivers from the window of his studio overlooking St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, September 16, 2018. Tens of thousands of faithful have been treated to gifts from the Pontiff, tiny crucifixes, distributed by nuns, refugees and some of Rome’s homeless and poor after the Pope’s traditional Sunday appearance to pilgrims and tourists in the square. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — A media report linking half of the cardinals and bishops who served in the Netherlands between 1945 and 2010 to abuse cases has drawn the country’s Catholic Church into the church’s global sex abuse and cover-up scandal.

Respected Dutch daily NRC links 20 of 39 bishops and cardinals to abuse, saying four bishops committed abuse and another 16 senior clergymen transferred priests who had been accused of abuse to new locations.

The report published in the paper’s weekend edition was based on a 2011 Dutch Catholic Church report about abuse, victims’ testimony to a commission of inquiry, and the newspaper’s own research.

In a written reaction, the Dutch Catholic Church said that in confirmed cases of abuse, “bishops did not act with sufficient care” when transferring priests. /kga