After a controversial poster opposing Church abuse scandals was taken down in Portugal during the Pope's visit for World Youth Day, the district has now reinstalled it.
Just ahead of Pope Francis's arrival on Wednesday, activists placed large street posters in three municipalities (Lisbon, Oeiras, and Loures), drawing attention to a child abuse scandal uncovered in the Portuguese Church in February.
The posters read, "4,800+ children abused by the Catholic Church in Portugal."
Oeiras has now backtracked and reinstalled the poster, but at a more discreet, quieter location with less traffic, said state TV broadcaster RTP on Friday. The municipality justified the location by saying it had been provided for free.
The attention surrounding the posters turned into outrage when the municipality of Oeiras, west of the capital Lisbon, removed the poster in their area. The justification given was that it was "illegal advertising." RTP reported that many people complained.
The posters were put up by the This is Our Memorial movement, founded by designer Telma Tavares.
"Although this World Youth Day is about improving the chruch's image, we do not forget the victims," Tavares told newspaper Público.
An independent committee reported in February, after months of investigation, that at least 4,815 children had been sexually abused in the Catholic Church in Portugal over the past seven decades.
This number is "an absolute minimum," and there were probably many more cases, the commission's president, Pedro Strecht, said. The victims were on average 11.2 years old, said the report.
Pope Francis met with 13 victims of sexual abuse in the Church on Wednesday.
