“Don’t expect to be millionaires! “, “You do not seem too affected by this case. These reflections – clumsy to say the least – addressed to the victims of sexual violence in the Church are taken from an issue of “Complément d’Enquête” (1). France 2’s investigative program devotes a program to the two compensation commissions created for victims of pedocrime, in the wake of the publication of the Sauvé report. The report, broadcast this Thursday, January 19, seriously scratches these two bodies and their functioning, relaying there the grievances of some of the victims who sent their file to the organizations.
There are two bodies responsible for offering a course of “restorative justice” to victims: the Recognition and Reparation Commission (CRR) deals with people assaulted by religious figures. The Independent National Authority for Recognition and Reparation (Inirr) supports the victims of diocesan priests. Both offer a wide variety of “reparation” paths, including symbolic steps as well as financial compensation, up to €60,000.
“Money is decisive but insufficient”
It is precisely on the financial aspect that the teams of “Complementary investigation” concentrate, who suspect the Church of wanting to minimize the importance of money in the process of reparation, as well as the amounts of compensation offered. to the victims. Critics denied by both authorities. “On the contrary, we believe that the financial stakes are decisive. But they are insufficient, because they will never be up to the seriousness of the facts and the consequences of these facts on the life of the person”, explains Marie Derain de Vaucresson, president of the Inirr.
In fact, the ceiling of €60,000 imposed for compensation is resented by some. “The first abusive decision of these authorities is to have constructed this scale without the consent of the victims. We know that the wallet is not elastic, we are not children, but it was decided without us, and that, basically, is a mistake”, storm Yolande du Fayet de la Tour, member of a group of victims. “The 60,000 € are inspired by the scales of the French courts for moral and bodily damages”, defends Valentine Buck, magistrate on availability, coordinator of the members of the CRR.
Recognition also involves “listening and personalized help”
Beyond the sums, at the Inirr as at the CRR, we want to highlight “the link work” carried out with people, which constitutes, according to the leaders of the organisations, the heart of their work. “There is a huge misunderstanding if we are presented as an administrative commission, dedicated to calculating the amount of compensation for victims of pedocrime in the Church. We are a team responsible for offering victims the most recognition possible – and this manifests itself in financial compensation if they request it –, but also in listening and personalized help”, pleads Valentine Buck.
Victims of priests and religious actually show specific needs: some want a diocese or a religious congregation to provide an act of public recognition of acts committed by one of their members, the organization of a day or a memorial gesture, writing workshops, etc. The CRR and Inirr referents must adapt as closely as possible to the requests: one person, for example, wanted to be supported in his administrative process of change first name because she had the same as her attacker.
A man asked for help in organizing a day with other victims of the same priest, where he could read a text on the tomb of the attacking cleric, with a bishop who witnessed this moment. “There were also his brothers and sisters who had never believed him, his wife and children,” says Marie Derain de Vaucresson. The meaning of all this belongs to the victims. »
“Inefficient and undersized support”
The CRR and the Inirr also explain that they have improved significantly since their launch and have come out of the trial and error of the beginnings. “At the CRR, volunteers who were clumsy with the victims were thanked, the processes were refined”, believes Véronique Margron, president of the Conference of Religious of France.
After a little over a year of existence, the major dysfunction denounced by the victims remains within the processing times for their file, especially with regard to the Inirr. If the first people who filed their requests in January 2022 received a first response within six months, the deadlines are now extending up to three years for victims who requested the proceedings in October 2022.
“You have to see that there are people aged 75 who are faced with these delays. They legitimately wonder where they will be until they are offered an appointment. The Inirr’s support capacity is largely undersized”, tackles Olivier Savignac, president of the association of victims Parler et revivre.
Doubling of the number of files processed each month
Marie Derain de Vaucresson admits: “We were overwhelmed from the start, which seriously raised the question of deadlines. This lawyer, specialist in the rights of the child, however underlines the gradual rise in power of the organization, boosted by the recent recruitment of volunteers and the acquisition of experience. “From 20 to 25 decisions rendered per month, we rose to 50 in December 2022. This will be the case again in January. We multiply our capacity for action, ”she pleads.
For some victim applications, difficulties may arise from cooperation with dioceses and religious congregations. “In my case, the feeling of reparation is far from complete, testifies Cécile Berne, victim of sexual assault by a priest and supported by the Inirr. I had asked the diocese of Versailles, with the support of the Inirr, for details on the past of my attacker. The diocese was content to send us a minimum of information, partial and vague. On the side of religious communities, some congregations may also be reluctant to launch calls for testimonies concerning one of their members. Sign that “the culture of repair” must now go beyond the walls of dedicated bodies.
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1,700 repair requests were filed
As of January 13, 1,140 requests for recognition and compensation have been submitted to the Inirr, which has so far ruled on approximately 160 situations. The CRR reports 604 referrals for the year 2022.
In both bodies, the average amount of financial reparations recommended is between €37,000 and €38,000. Compensation is paid to the victims by religious congregations in the case of the CRR and by the Selam fund set up by the bishops of France in the case of the Inirr.
Victims requesting the Inirr and the CRR are assigned referents who accompany them throughout the repair process. They are 15 in number in the first instance and 25 in the second.
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