A prominent Canadian cardinal has been accused of sexual assault in a civil suit filed against the Archdiocese of Quebec.
Cardinal Marc Armand Ouellet has been named in a class action suit that targets more than 80 members of the clergy in the Quebec diocese, court documents showed.
Ouellet is a prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, one of the most important functions within the Curia, the government of the Vatican. He has also been touted as a contender to become Pope.
The accusation over the alleged abuse of a female intern in 2008 comes just weeks after Pope Francis visited Canada, where he apologised for the decades-long abuse of indigenous children in Catholic-run residential schools.
When contacted by Agence France-Presse, the Quebec diocese said in a statement that it had “taken note of the allegations with respect to Cardinal Marc Ouellet” and had no further comment.
The claims against Cardinal Ouellet in the civil suit are among testimonies of 101 people who have accused members of the clergy and church staff of sexual assault from 1940 to today. The Quebec supreme court ruled in May that the suit could proceed.
According to the class action documents, most of the assaults allegedly took place in the ’50s and ’60s.
Ouellet’s accuser, identified only as “F,” says the cardinal – then the archbishop of Quebec – assaulted her multiple times. She alleges that in 2010 he kissed her and slid his hand along her back to her buttocks.
On different occasions, Ouellet allegedly held the woman against his body, massaged her shoulders or vigorously caressed her back “down to the spot where the buttocks start,” each time making her feel very uncomfortable.
“I felt chased after. It became more and more invasive, more and more intense to the point where I stopped attending events. I tried avoiding being in his presence as much as possible,” she said.
So far, the cardinal is not facing criminal charges.
In February, Ouellet opened a Vatican symposium on the priesthood by apologising for “unworthy” clergy and the cover-up of child sexual abuse by Catholic clergy. The audience included Pope Francis.
“We are all torn and humbled by these crucial questions that every day question us as members of the Church,” Ouellet said.
He commented that the symposium was an opportunity to express regret and ask victims for forgiveness, after their lives were “destroyed by abusive and criminal behaviour” that was hidden or treated lightly to protect the institution and the perpetrators.
Since becoming pope in 2013, Pope Francis has striven to tackle the decades-long sexual abuse scandals. However, many activists against paedophilia insist much more needs to be done.
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