Sinkevičius: politicians should not decide on Church investigation into sexual crimes
Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius has stated that an investigation into alleged sexual crimes against children in the Church is the Church's own matter. Vilnius Archbishop Grušas does not currently agree on the necessity of a large-scale investigation.
Sinkevičius: the state should not interfere in the Church's decisions on investigating crimes
Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius told journalists on Friday that politicians should not decide whether the Catholic Church in Lithuania should conduct an independent investigation into alleged sexual crimes against children.
"State governance is separate from Church governance, they are entirely separate spheres," said the prime minister. According to him, Church leaders can decide for themselves on the necessity of such an investigation.
Sinkevičius added that legal processes are in place in the country, and it is not advisable for state politicians to interfere in the decisions of Church hierarchs. "These are their decisions and they should respond to society's expectations," said the prime minister.
Vilnius Archbishop Metropolitan Gintaras Grušas takes a more cautious position. According to him, now is not the right time for a large-scale historical investigation that would establish the scale of sexual abuse in the Lithuanian Catholic Church over the past decades. Grušas does not rule out that such an investigation could be carried out in the future, but the most important priority now is the protection of possible victims and crime prevention.
As reported by 15min, the discussions were prompted by two cases of priests handed over to courts this summer. Priest Tadas Švedavičius is accused of sexual crimes against 11 minors – a total of 34 criminal episodes recorded, covering the period from 2002 to 2025. This case is being heard in the Vilnius Regional Court.
In a case handed over to Vilnius City District Court, another priest – Ryšardas Peciunas – is accused of possession of child pornography; there are no victims in this case.
Against the background of these cases, there is again active discussion about creating a public register of sexual offenders in Lithuania.
Source: 15min