Following shocking revelations of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church in Switzerland, the Bishops' Conference of Switzerland has announced plans to establish a tribunal to discipline clergy members who break ecclesiastic law. The conference expressed devastation after a study revealed nearly a thousand victims and extensive efforts to cover up the abuse. In a statement, the Bishops' Conference outlined concrete measures to strengthen safeguards and ensure that victims and their families receive justice and support. One of these measures includes the creation of an ecclesiastic criminal and disciplinary tribunal for the Church of Switzerland.

It is important to note that Swiss criminal laws will continue to prevail, and cases of abuse or other infractions within the ecclesiastic setting will still be referred to criminal prosecutorial authorities. The proposed tribunal will be responsible for imposing sanctions on clergy members who violate ecclesiastic law. The conference is currently in the process of arranging a meeting with Vatican authorities to discuss the establishment of the tribunal. The decision to create the tribunal follows the release of results from a year-long inquiry conducted by researchers at the University of Zurich. The inquiry identified 921 victims of sexual abuse within the Church since 1950, with the majority of cases either going unreported or documents containing information about the abuse being destroyed.

A further three-year research campaign is set to complete the study. The Bishops' Conference also announced a separate investigation into accusations that four current and two former bishops had covered up cases of sexual abuse by clergy. In addition to the proposed tribunal, the conference is working on establishing a national center that will receive and gather victim accounts. The conference has guaranteed researchers access to all necessary archives and pledged that no further documents will be destroyed. To prevent future abuse and the suffering caused by it, the conference emphasized its commitment to continually adapting procedures and rendering justice to victims. The statement acknowledged that the Swiss Bishops can never do enough in the face of the abuse that has occurred, making their top priority the prevention of abuse and ensuring justice for victims.