Prime Minister of Poland Minister Morawiecki Defends Reputation of Saint Pope John Paul II after TVN24 Report


 In the dispute over the accusation of covering up abuse against Pope John Paul II (1978-2005), Poland's head of government is now protecting its native Saint. Polish Prime Minister Morawiecki, calls evidence for allegations against Archbishop Karol Wojtyla; only "very, very dubious"  for dealing with cases of abuse (see video below). The child protection coordinator of the Polish Bishops' Conference says for fair assessment "further archive research" is necessary. 
Allegations in a TV report by journalist Marcin Gutowski, TV station TVN24, recently accused John Paul II of knowing about cases of abuse during his time as Archbishop of Kraków in the 1970s. Nevertheless, he allowed the perpetrators to continue working as priests in parishes. For his research, Gutowski relied on documents from the former communist secret police SB, individual church documents and interviews with former employees of the Archdiocese of Kraków. 
 The Prime Minister, of Poland, Mateusz Morawiecki explained in a video he published on social media on March 8th: "Today I am defending our beloved Pope because, like the clear majority of my compatriots, I know that we see John Paul II as I owe a lot to the people, maybe owe everything." There is a "huge amount of evidence" that the former pope also fought against "shameful deeds" in the Church. On the other hand, there is no or only "very, very dubious" evidence that John Paul II deliberately ignored such acts, Morawiecki said. The national-conservative head of government sharply condemned the "attacks" on the former head of the church: "Today the war is raging not only outside our eastern borders. Unfortunately, there are circles that are trying to trigger a civil war in Poland instead of a military one." Because the attacks on the Pope from Poland are not about a civilized debate or a civil dispute. According to him, they come from groups that want a revolution "that turns the previous life of the majority of society upside down" instead of tradition, culture and normality. Victims of sexualized violence by clergymen who were subordinate to Karol Wojtyla as archbishop also had their say in the TV report. According to Gutowski, access to the archives of the Archdiocese of Kraków was denied.

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