translated from Spanish: National Prosecutor and Episcopal Conference sign agreement of collaboration in investigations of sexual offences

The national prosecutor, Jorge Abbott, together with the Secretary General of the Conference Episcopal de Chile (CECH), Fernando Ramos, signed an agreement of collaboration and exchange of information to facilitate the development of past research, in course or next, involving sexual crimes committed by members of the Church against children, girls, adolescents and people in situation of disability. The cooperation agreement aims clarify and improve the process of research on this type of crime, and also to preserve the protection to victims and witnesses. To do this, the bishops pledged, once known any acts criminal, to derive the history to the public prosecutor’s Office at the earliest possible date, with the exception of those who are obliged to report, within a maximum of 24 hours, of According to the provisions of article 175 of the code of criminal procedure. The prosecution, for its part, assumed the constitutional obligation to protect victims and witnesses in the criminal process, where also reiterates its commitment to provide the highest level of confidentiality, protecting the identity and background of the victims in order to take care of their intimacy, understanding the seriousness of these crimes. “We call on all people, mainly to the victims, to make complaints to the public prosecutor’s Office and to initiate investigations and establish the truth in their cases and, therefore, claim in the courts of justice sanctions that apply, pursuant to the acts committed,”said Abbott.Desde the month of July of 2018, the national prosecutor’s Office, through the unit specialized in human rights, gender violence and sexual crimes, prepares and updates a national survey that contains the number of current investigations into sexual crimes by priests and lay people associated with the Church. Thus, the national prosecutor said today that there are currently 166 research, 221 persons investigated and 248 victims.

Original source in Spanish