The South African families of the victims of paedophile priest Georg Kerkhoff, 56, are preparing to seek compensation from the church after he was sentenced to six years imprisonment for sexual offences against children by a German court.

 

The Krefeld district court sentenced the former Randburg priest on Friday to six years in prison for eight cases of sexual abuse of children under his protection, 13 cases of sexual abuse of children and four cases of severe sexual abuse of children.

 

His conviction and sentencing came after he was extradited from South Africa where he faced similar charges, to face more than 20 charges in Germany his home country.

 

The father of a Johannesburg teenager, who claims he was abused by Kerkhoff during a church camp in 2008, said a German children’s rights group was representing some of the victims, including his son, to get compensation from the Catholic Church.

 

“Money will not be enough. We want a public apology. The church treated us like we were the ones who were wrong. My son was struggling at school. 

 

“It has been a stressful period,” the father said.

 

The father of another South African victim said: “They treated us like rubbish when these allegations first came out. They were in complete denial that something like this had happened. As far as I am concerned, the Catholic Church does not exist to me.

 

“They have failed to practise their own message.”

 

Shaheeda Omar, from the Teddy Bear Clinic, said she was disgusted by the lenient sentence given to Kerkhoff.

 

“This man has a long history of child molestation. We cannot guarantee the safety of children around him.”

 

She warned however that the process of seeking compensation might cause secondary trauma to the children.

 

“The church must apologise. The priest got backing from somewhere and that is why this cycle of violence continued.”

 

Spokesperson for the South African Catholic Bishops Conference, William Slattery, apologised to the victims and said the church would offer assistance. He said Kerkhoff would be defrocked

 

South Africa’s cardinal to the Vatican and a member of the church’s paedophilia committee, Wilfred Napier, who came under fire from international media for his “poor” comments on paedophilia could not be reached for comment.

 

Napier had reportedly said paedophiles should be treated as sick people and not as criminals.

 

Kerkhoff’s victims included his 11-year-old godson and his eight-year-old brother.