More Ex-Vienna Choir Boys Allege Abuse

(AP)  The Vienna Boys' Choir said Wednesday it has heard from eight possible abuse victims following an initial report of allegations last week.

The famed institution said the men range in age from about 40 to over 70 and contacted the choir through a confidential hot line set up Friday after a local newspaper reported that two former members, both now adults, said they were sexually abused.

Tina Breckwoldt, who is responsible for the hotline, declined to disclose whether the eight abuse allegations are sexual, physical or psychological in nature and whether the alleged perpetrator were adults or other choir members.

"No one can undo injustice," the choir said. "At the moment, listening is most important."

The Vienna Boys' Choir is not church-affiliated. Many boys live in dormitories while singing away from their families. They also travel frequently.

The choir said on its Web site that it was taking the allegations very seriously. In an open letter to parents, choir members and alumni dated March 12 it said that "this kind of abuse, even if it took place in the past, constitutes an injustice that we deeply regret and that must and want to face."

The allegations coincide with a string of abuse claims against members of Austria's Catholic church.

In last week's article by the "Der Standard" newspaper, a 33-year-old who now lives in Berlin, was cited as saying he and others were pressured to wash their genitals in the shower while supervisors watched. He also said an older choir member forced him to perform oral sex at one point while he was a member of the choir from 1985 to 1987.

Another member, described as a 51-year-old psychologist living in Munich who sang with the group between 1966 and 1970, said a choir master rested his hand on his thigh for an hour while on a bus tour.

Meanwhile, Pope Benedict XVI says he hopes his upcoming letter to Irish Catholics on the sex abuse scandal in the Irish Church helps with the process of "repentance, healing and renewal."

Benedict told his weekly general audience Wednesday that he would sign the pastoral letter Friday and would send it to the faithful soon thereafter.

Speaking in English, Benedict acknowledged the Irish church had been "severely shaken" as a result of the crisis, and that he himself was "deeply concerned."

[mjlewis6]

If it weren't for moral scandals, we would have a pretty boring life and it just gives the more willingly judgmental an opportunity to spout invectives.

We've had a Presidential Administration lead the whole world astray on a war over WMD...really about oil....but somehow a Republican Congress was able to impeach a President Clinton over a private misconduct with an intern, spending 60 million for special prosecutor Kenneth Starr to force a confession...that it happened. (he is now President of Baylor University in Waco, Texas...a skip from Crawford, Texas where Bush has his ranch.)

Whatever happened to moral outrage over wars of aggression and outright abandonment of the rule of law for torture, renditions, kidnapping and mistreatment of civilians, much less POWs?

We seem to think war criminals are not Americans...well, we have a few on the loose. Sex hardly rises to the level of political incompetence, but our society seems bent upon inverting an essential human activity to the highest rung of immoral conduct as opposed to murder for profit organized by the state.

[ellensmithee]

The Catholic Church should be dissolved.

[DawnBroderick40]

The thing that cracks me up is that you can google just about ANY faith and find sexual scandals. Yes, Rabbis, ministers, all kinds of faiths and see sex abuse. The news latches on to the stories and single-minded people like yourself grab hold as well. Try educating yourself for a change.

[spikedawg]

This is disgusting. This scandal is like an onion, layers upon layers are being peeled back, revealing more perversion, abuse, and cover ups. I hope some day all the perpetrators are caught, revealed and punished.