Denmark’s Roman Catholic Bishop Czeslav Kozon has done an about face on a decision not to investigate former sexual abuses by priests, following heavy pressure from the Danish media and Catholics.

In a press release, Kozon, who is currently on a working visit to the Vatican, says he plans to set up a group of ‘competent people’ to look into allegations of sexual abuse by clergy. The Danish Roman Catholic church has been criticised by the media for not investigating allegations of sexual abuse over the past century.

According to Bishop Kozon’s statement, the group is to carry out a thorough investigation of cases that have been brought to its attention.

“Catholics, who can see that it is difficult to carry out an investigation into previous cases of the sexual abuse of children by the clergy given that there is only sporadic information, have at the same time advised that as many cards that exist, should be laid on the table – and I will follow that advice,” Bishop Kozon says.

Bishop Kozon has not been available for comment. He is currently in Rome with bishops from the other Nordic countries for their five-yearly visit to the Holy See.

Kozon is previously reported as saying that he knows of 4-5 cases in the 1980s or before of the abuse of children and young people but that the Church is neither obliged to investigate old cases of sexual abuse or report new cases to the police.

The bishop’s new decision appears to reverse that obligation and comes after Pope Benedict XVI wrote a pastoral letter to Irish Catholics apologising for “the abuse of children and vulnerable young people by members of the Church in Ireland, particularly by priests and religious”.

To bishops who failed to respond adequately to allegations, the Pope writes: “..it must be admitted that grave errors of judgement were made and failures of leadership occurred. All this has seriously undermined your credibility and effectiveness”.

DOCUMENTATION: Read the Pope’s letter here