At least 37 reports of sexual abuse of minors and other vulnerable individuals by members of the clergy were recorded in Panama from 2001 to 2025, according to a report released on Tuesday.
The report was prepared by two Catholic universities, at the request of the Catholic Church in Panama itself, with the aim of examining how the Church handled allegations of sexual abuse of minors.
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During the presentation of the report, the Archbishop of Panama City, José Domingo Uyo, spoke of the need to document how “the entire reality of the sexual abuse of minors” was addressed.
He reiterated his apology to the victims, which he had also expressed publicly in 2023, while noting that five members of the clergy were defrocked following their convictions for sexual abuse.
No evidence of an organized cover-up was found
The report found no evidence proving the existence of a deliberate policy of covering up incidents of abuse by the Catholic Church in Panama. However, it did document problems with how the relevant authorities handled the complaints.
The study was conducted by the Spanish University of Villanueva in collaboration with the University of Notre Dame in the United States.
The complaints do not necessarily reflect the true extent of the problem
María José Valero, one of the report’s authors, pointed out that the number of complaints does not necessarily reflect the true extent of the abuse.
As she explained, many victims may be reluctant to report what they have endured, which can lead to a significant underreporting of incidents.
The issue of sexual abuse by members of the clergy has caused an international scandal for the Catholic Church, as cases spanning many decades and involving various countries have come to light.
A 2019 report by the Child Rights International Network (CRIN) noted that, although Latin America is the region of the world with the largest number of Catholics, it has the lowest rates of reported cases of sexual abuse by members of the clergy.
Source: Proto Thema / ERT
