At least 4,815 children were sexually abused by members of the Portuguese Catholic Church – mostly priests – over the past 70 years, the commission investigating the issue said in a report on Monday, adding the findings are the “tip of the iceberg”.

“(We want) to pay a sincere tribute to those who were abuse victims during their childhood and dared to give a voice to silence,” said child psychiatrist Pedro Strecht, who headed the commission. “They are much more than a statistic.”

Most perpetrators (77%) were priests and 57% of the victims were men, Strecht said, adding that they were abused in Catholic schools, churches, priests’ homes, confessionals, among other locations.

The majority of the sexual abuses took place when the children were aged 10-14, with the youngest victim being just two-years-old.

Jose Ornelas, head of the Bishops’ Conference, attended the final report’s presentation and told a news conference…