A boy was reportedly raped and cut with razor blades by a priest.
Member of Parliament Ivan Pernar (Živi Zid) criticised Children’s Ombudsperson Ivana Milas Klarić because, as he said, she did not speak about the case of a boy “sodomised and cut with a razor blade by a priest.” The case was first reported by Nova TV, reports Index.hr and dnevnik.hr on 13 July 2017.
“It seems that everyone will discuss this issue before her, because she, instead of dealing with real violence against children, rather deals with Pernar to create an illusion of doing something and advocating for the children,” said Pernar, calling on other MPs to vote for the Ombudswoman’s dismissal.
He pointed out that, a few days ago, Nova TV reported that “a bishop’s secretary, a priest, sodomised a boy, and then cut him with razor blades.” “The boy says that the abuse began when he was 13. The priest was initially sentenced to prison, but later it was turned to community service. The public does not know about this case; the victim does not speak about it publicly. The priest has been moved to another parish, and he is sodomising more boys there. Why doesn’t the Croatian public know about this case of abuse?” asked Pernar.
He added he was shocked that the Children’s Ombudsperson did not say anything about this grave case of violation of children’s rights. “Instead, she is concerned with whether Ivan Pernar has taken a photo with some child, and that is a problem for her,” said Pernar.
In its report, Nova TV said that the boy was only 13 years old when he became a victim of the priest’s abuse. After years of depression, the young man has learned that he was not the only one who was the victim of abuse by that priest and decided to speak out.
“The bishop’s secretary used to meet me in a bathrobe, naked or in shorts. “One night we watched a football match. I drank some beer, and he drank some grapefruit juice. When I went to the toilet, he came with me and pushed me to bed. That is where it happened. It took only two to three minutes,” said the young man who wanted to remain anonymous.
“He liked to cut me with razor blades. The sex, if it could even be called sex, was never gentle. It was always rough and violent,” the young man recalled.
He informed Bishop Srakić about the incident, who apologised and expressed hope that this would not change his relationship with the Church. However, shortly after that, the priest who abused the young man was moved to a small parish in Serbia. “That is not punishment because this man is still walking the streets. There are two other people in the archdiocese who are doing the same thing, but the bishops are silent,” the young man said.
In recent days, the tragic story has received a court epilogue. The first-instance verdict of the Municipal Court in Osijek reads: “The priest is guilty of sexual intercourse with a minor. He is sentenced to one year in prison, which has been converted to community service.” Responsible persons within the Church, who knew about the crime and did not report it, can be punished with up to three years’ of imprisonment. At least in theory.
