Pope Leo demands end to violence against women: ‘It wounds all of humanity’

Pope Leo XIV has demanded an end to violence against women in Peru, telling locals that “machismo” is widespread and must stop.The Pope made the remarks during an emotional homecoming to the South American country following lung cancer surgery.He was in fine form despite the operation, bounding up a steep flight of stairs Thursday morning without any apparent problems.He joked with the bishops that some “doubting Thomases” had predicted he wouldn't be able to come.“But God is great and his grace is bigger than all of us and I’m very happy to be here with you,” he said to applause.In a speech to Peruvians in the plaza, Leo denounced the culture of “machismo” and violence against women that is prevalent in Peru.Pope Leo is on a 12-day trip to South America (Reuters)He said it went against the Christian teaching that proclaims men and women share equal dignity.“It pains us to see that violence against women — who could be our grandmothers, mothers, sisters or daughters — continues to be a reality that wounds all of humanity,” he said.Poor, Indigenous and Afro-Peruvian women are doubly penalized, he noted.He called for all women to be valued, protected and respected.Gender-based violence is an urgent social issue in Peru, which recorded 1,261 femicide victims between 2016 and 2024, according to the National Institute of Statistics and Informatics.During that period, the number of women killed because of their gender rose by 44 per cent, suggesting the problem is only getting worse.“While we’ve made progress with women’s suffrage and in being heard more, femicides are still on the rise — or at least they’re receiving more attention,” said Nicole Cruz, who was in the Plaza Mayor for the pope's speech Thursday.Cruz said she hopes the pope's words will help unite women and help “men understand that we’re not complaining, but that we want help and to be loved and heard.”The Pope has recently undergone lung cancer surgery (Reuters)Leo spent two decades as a missionary priest and bishop in Peru and credits the place with teaching him how to be a shepherd.While the clergy sexual abuse scandal hasn't exploded publicly in Peru as it has in other Latin American countries, Leo identified it as a “reality that has caused us so much pain.”He said: “We must respond as Jesus would, with truth, justice, forgiveness, making amends and an ever more resolute commitment to fostering a culture of prevention and protection for the weakest in light of such crimes.”He instructed bishops to respond to victims of clergy sexual abuse with truth and justice.He later put that into practice by meeting with six victims for an hour, listening to their stories and “reflecting with them on how to foster a change in mindset by listening to the victims, seeking the truth, pursuing paths to healing, and committing to creating safe environments,” the Vatican said.Among the six were former members of the Peru-based Sodalitium Christianae Vitae, a once-powerful movement.Leo knows the case well, having been the Peruvian bishops' point-person to welcome Sodalitium's victims while he was Chiclayo bishop.In 2011, former members complained to the archdiocese in Peru's capital, Lima, about abuses by its founder, Luis Figari.But neither the local church nor the Holy See took concrete action until one of the victims and a journalist, Pedro Salinas and Paola Ugaz, wrote a book in 2015.Pope Francis suppressed the Sodalitium sect before his death in 2025 (Getty)After attempts at reform, Francis sent his two most trusted investigators to look into the Sodalitium abuse allegations.Their report uncovered “sadistic” sect-like abuses of power and spirituality, and financial abuses in administering church funds.Francis suppressed the movement shortly before he died in 2025, but it still wields economic power in Peru.On Thursday, José Escardó, the Sodalitium's first whistleblower who wrote about the abuses he suffered in 2000, said the church's rhetoric has been empty when it comes to punishing clergymen who commit crimes.Outside the house where Leo is staying, Escardó complained that the Pope has not responded letters from victims for over a year.“These are not sins, they are not a mistake, that is an offense. These are crimes, and as such they must be punished,” Escardó said.Beyond the Sodalitium case, the online database BishopAccountability has identified 77 priests, brothers, seminarians and laypeople consecrated in Peru who have been publicly accused of sexually abusing minors.But based on trends in other countries, the organization said that number is a “small fraction” of the total.It argued that victims simply haven't come forward yet in the overwhelmingly Catholic country where the church wields significant influence.Rape Crisis offers support for those affected by rape and sexual abuse. You can call them on 0808 802 9999 in England and Wales, 0808 801 0302 in Scotland, and 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland, or visit their website at www.rapecrisis.org.uk. If you are in the US, you can call Rainn on 800-656-HOPE (4673).