The lawyer in charge of investigating allegations of abuse within the Jesuit order believes there is a genuine desire to establish the facts behind 115 alleged cases of child abuse at a Berlin Jesuit school.

"I have the impression, and this is repeatedly being reinforced, that the men currently involved in the investigation are seriously interested in sniffing out the truth," Ursula Raue said Thursday on Phoenix television channel.

"They have enlisted me - someone from the outside, a woman who is not Catholic and who has experience with sexual abuse cases. That's a clear sign that there is a real desire to get an outsider's point of view here."

Raue praised the cooperation from the Canisius College in Berlin, and its headmaster, Klaus Mertes.

"Right from the outset he made it clear to anyone who might be affected by the scandal that they should come to me."

The German Jesuit order on Thursday announced it would put more staff at Raue's disposal. In her interim report, Raue said there was still much work to be done.

Victims ignored

She was critical of the focus of the Jesuit order's existing research into the abuse cases, saying that the files focused primarily on the actions of the accused.

"The point of view of the victims was hardly ever addressed, in my view," Raue said. "No one ever asked: 'And what do we do with the children now?' That is something that I immediately noticed, and that I think was lacking."

While the case began with accusations of abuse at Canisius College between 1975 and 1983, many more victims quickly came forward. The Jesuits have since issued an apology and admitted to covering up cases of abuse at schools in Berlin and other cities, including Hamburg, St. Blasien, Goettingen and Bonn.

msh/DPA/KNA
Editor: Nancy Isenson