SOS Children's Villages Announces External Evaluation Following Allegations of Violence

Following serious allegations against the SOS Children's Village in Moosburg near Klagenfurt, the institution announced on Wednesday an "external evaluation of the processing processes." The Vienna weekly newspaper "Falter" reported on Tuesday about serious allegations against the facility: children and adolescents were allegedly mistreated, locked up, and photographed naked over the years, and the matter was swept under the rug.

Violence and Abuse as a Daily Routine

The allegations, which date back to the years 2008 to 2020, were recorded in a study commissioned by SOS Children's Village itself. However, the results have not been published to this day. The "Falter" quotes from the study that an educator had nude photos of children on his private laptop. A children's village mother is said to have locked a girl in a room every night for three years, and children were allegedly punished with food and water deprivation. The educator watched the children shower "to prevent secret drinking," the "Falter" quotes from the study.

The defenseless minors were reportedly also bitten and beaten. A children's village director is said to have been informed about the incidents and documented them. But instead of helping the minors, he was reportedly violent towards them himself, according to the study.

Evaluation to Follow "Promptly"

SOS Children's Village again denied on Wednesday allegations that the incidents were swept under the rug: "After the allegations became known in 2020, a comprehensive processing was initiated." They parted ways with executives and "comprehensively addressed the allegations with the help of external support." There was a stop on admissions at the location in 2020, which was officially lifted in December 2020.

That mistakes were made is "beyond question": "The suffering that the young people experienced in the care of SOS Children's Village deeply affects us, and we want to sincerely apologize for it." Some affected individuals have undergone victim protection procedures and have been granted "compensation payments and the financing of therapy sessions."

Further steps were also announced: "The supervisory board will promptly commission an external evaluation of the processing processes to ensure institutional responsibility," said SOS Children's Village. It will be checked whether the measures taken after the allegations became known were effective. Furthermore, the institution states: "All those affected who have been wronged by SOS Children's Village can contact the external independent ombuds offices," and misconduct or grievances can also be reported via a whistleblowing platform of SOS Children's Village.

Investigations Already Closed

In 2020, there were investigations by the Klagenfurt public prosecutor's office - against a former director of the SOS Children's Village Moosburg and another person. They were accused of depictions of abuse of minors and abuse of an authority relationship during a stay at a holiday camp in Italy. However, the investigations by the public prosecutor's office were closed, said authority spokesman Markus Kitz upon APA request: The pictures of the bathing children did not fall under the relevant paragraph 207a of the penal code.

However, the case had repercussions for the person who reported the home director. This person filed a defamation complaint in 2020. The Klagenfurt Regional Court initially delivered a guilty verdict. However, the verdict was overturned by the Graz Higher Regional Court, resulting in an acquittal.

Authority Imposed Admission Stop

The responsible departments of the state of Carinthia were only informed about the allegations by SOS Children's Village in 2020, according to the Carinthia Child and Youth Welfare Service on Wednesday in response to an APA inquiry. At that time, it was stated that there had been "failures to report allegations against an employee" by the then Children's Village director. These allegations included the mentioned photos of naked children that were stored on the employee's private laptop. This employee was no longer employed by SOS Children's Village at that time. Subsequently, allegations against the then Children's Village director became known, as well as "inadequate pedagogical practices by individual employees" and "deficiencies in the implementation of guidelines and standards."

The accusation that the authorities did not fulfill their responsibilities is "strongly rejected" by the Child and Youth Welfare Service. Immediately after the review, an admission stop was imposed in May 2020, which was communicated to all district administrative authorities in Carinthia. Furthermore, a multi-day "professional supervision" was conducted to protect the children and adolescents being cared for at that time.

Study Not Yet Available

Regarding the inspections at SOS Children's Village Moosburg, it is stated that these "professional supervisions" are conducted at least once a year. A checklist is worked through, examining areas such as personnel (number, care ratio, qualifications, criminal record checks, training, duty rosters), as well as child and youth-related surveys (duration of stay, diagnoses, medication, parental work, leisure activities, special incidents) and the facility in general is assessed (concept, participation, prevention, crisis plans, equipment, order, hygiene). The children and adolescents accommodated are also spoken to without the presence of caregivers.

After the allegations became known, the state of Carinthia commissioned an "external evaluation of SOS Children's Village Carinthia with a focus on the Moosburg location." The offerings at the location were changed: "Care is provided in residential groups and small groups. The model of the Children's Village mother no longer exists in its original form." In the family-like groups, "additionally well-qualified employees" were also employed. Incidentally, the study cited by "Falter" was still not available to the Child and Youth Welfare Service on Wednesday: "A transmission of the study has been requested," it was stated.

Politics Demands "Comprehensive Investigation"

Reactions from Carinthian state politics were not long in coming: "The publicly revealed revelations about systematic abuse in SOS Children's Village Moosburg are deeply disturbing and morally highly reprehensible," responded Team Carinthia leader Gerhard Köfer, stating that "not only a comprehensive criminal investigation is needed, but also a relentless clarification of institutional and official failures."

The deputy NEOS state spokesperson Iris Glanzer said the allegations surrounding SOS Children's Village deeply shook her: "Every single indication of abuse must be treated with the utmost seriousness and fully clarified." And Green Party state spokesperson Olga Voglauer demands a "comprehensive clarification and investigation," stating that "collective turning a blind eye" still occurs. She also sees the state of Carinthia as having a duty.

The allegations against employees of SOS Children's Village in Moosburg "are shocking and deeply affect me," responded Carinthia's FPÖ party chairman Erwin Angerer. He also criticized the authorities: "By 2020 at the latest, the grievances were known to the state, yet the public was systematically kept in the dark."

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.