Düsseldorf (dpa / lnw) - There will also be an investigative committee on the subject of child abuse in the newly elected North Rhine-Westphalian state parliament. In its constitutive session on Wednesday, Parliament unanimously decided to set up such a body.
A committee of inquiry had already been dealing with the complex of issues for almost three years during the past legislative period. The aim was to clarify possible omissions and misjudgments by the state government, the investigative authorities and the youth welfare offices in the case of hundreds of child abuses at a campsite in Lügde, Lippe, and other places.
A 4,000-page interim report stated that, among other things, youth welfare workers had not received any basic training in recognizing signs of sexual abuse among children and young people.
This week, a new nationwide abuse complex with an investigation focus in Wermelskirchen in the Rhineland-Berg has shaken the country. Now the educational work is to be continued at the joint request of the CDU, SPD, Greens and FDP. The AfD also agreed.
In a joint statement, the four applicants emphasized: "With the rapid reinstatement of the committee of inquiry, we want to make it clear that the issue has the highest priority for our parliamentary groups, for Parliament and for our entire state." Important questions could not have been illuminated so far. "We must ensure that children and young people in North Rhine-Westphalia are better protected against sexualised violence."
In the new legislature, the flow of information from actors in the health and social system should also be examined. "It is also important to us that the committee gets an idea of whether and how the children affected were offered help after the crimes were uncovered."
