For decades, Europe has been violating the protection of children: hundreds of thousands of children and young people have been victims of exploitation, mistreatment and sexual abuse. In particular, serious abuses have taken place in institutions run by the state or the church.

In most European countries, these abuses have not yet been addressed. But that is all set to change now. The Justice Initiative, launched in September 2021, draws our collective attention to a part of history that has been repressed, and to the victims who continue to suffer severely to this day, due to the abuse and the lack of public recognition. This political initiative aims, for the first time, to comprehensively address child abuse in all European countries.

Over half a million signatures calling for more protection against online child abuse – in December 2023, the Justice Initiative, together with victim support groups and child protection organisations from across Europe, submitted an international petition calling for more child protection online to the EU Parliament in Brussels. The petition was launched in Paris in February 2023.

The spread of pedocriminal material (Child Sexual Abuse Material, or CSAM) on the internet is increasing at a rapid rate – there were 1 million reports in 2010, but by 2022 there were already 32 million reports, containing 88 million images and videos. ‘This sexualised violence on the internet must be stopped,’ stresses Guido Fluri, the founder of the Justice Initiative, ‘because behind every image there is abuse. And behind every picture there is the suffering of a child.’

A great moment for survivors from all over Europe: in January 2024, the Council of Europe in Strasbourg voted to investigate previous cases of abuse following the Swiss model (Resolution 2533). Accordingly, the suffering of survivors of child abuse should be officially recognised in the Member States, those affected should receive reparation – regardless of any statute of limitations – and an academic reappraisal should be carried out in each country. The motion was submitted to the Council of Europe in October 2021.

The motion contains the fundamental demands of the Justice Initiative:

Reappraisal

The Council of Europe and its member states should ensure independent academic reappraisal of violations of children’s rights in each country.

Official recognition

The Council of Europe and its member states should ensure the official recognition of children who have suffered any form of sexual, physical and psychological violence (including the negative effects of discrimination), in particular with regard to children in private, state or church-run institutions and those who have been placed in foster care, forcibly adopted or separated from their mothers.

Reparations

The Council of Europe and its member states should ensure that victims receive some form of reparation.

Prevention

The laws in force in the member states should be aimed at protecting all children from abuse and mistreatment. Work on prevention needs to be stepped up.

The Justice Initiative is accompanied by the travelling exhibition ‘SHAME – European Stories’. From Italy to Sweden, Romania to Portugal, portraits of almost 100 victims of child abuse have been collected from across Europe. Never before has the dimension of the problem been reported and presented in this way. Photos and videos by award-winning journalist Simone Padovani, documenting the iniquities suffered, give the victims a voice. The travelling exhibition is currently on display in various major European cities.

21 February 2024

The Portuguese television station SIC accompanies Guido Fluri from the beginnings of the reparations initiative in Switzerland, to Strasbourg, where the Council of Europe, following a motion by the Justice Initiative, resolves to carry out a Europe-wide investigation, following the Swiss model.

20 March 2024

Romanian Sarmanca Fekete and German Karl Haucke were abused as children by the State, the Church or their own parents.Today they are fighting to be able to lead a normal life and get justice. Guido Fluri invited them both to Venice in 2022, when the Justice Initiative was launched with the photo exhibition ‘SHAME – European Stories’. This moving documentary film by 3sat portrays victims of child abuse and accompanies Guido Fluri in his efforts to achieve reparation in Europe following the Swiss model.

26 January 2024

Switzerland is at the forefront when it comes to legal action against child abuse by state, church or private organisations. The Swiss solution for child protection and victim assistance has even helped to shape the Europe-wide regulation – in a resolution of 26 January 2024, the Council of Europe adopted the Swiss model. In this podcast episode, SRF reports on the submission of the motion by the Justice Initiative for more child protection in Europe.

6 December 2023

On 6 December 2023, Guido Fluri, together with 40 child protection organisations, presented a petition for more online child protection to the EU Parliament in Brussels. The initiators of the petition were able to gather over half a million signatures. SRF accompanied the Justice Initiative and, above all, Guido Fluri during the handing in of the signatures to the EU Parliament.

26 April 2023

The Justice Initiative is also active in Portugal, a country with a history of abuse of children and young people that has not yet been fully addressed, and which does not provide comprehensive reparation for victims. António Assis Teixeira, a journalist at CNN Portugal, was moved by the events in his own country, and wanted to learn more about the founder and creator of the Justice Initiative. He therefore travelled to Switzerland to get to know Guido Fluri and his story.