A billboard denounces children sexual abuse by members of the Portuguese Catholic church during the XXXVII World Youth Day celebrations in Lisbon, Portugal, August 2, 2023. REUTERS/Catarina DemonyLISBON, Aug 2 (Reuters) - A huge billboard raising awareness of sexual abuse by clergymen was put up overnight in Lisbon, just hours before Pope Francis was due to arrive in the Portuguese capital for the world's largest gathering of young Catholics. The World Youth Day event was devised by the late Pope John Paul II for Catholics in their teens or early 20s and is held every two or three years in a different city. Lisbon Patriarch Manuel Clemente said on Monday the Portuguese church's commitment to tackle clergy sexual abuse was "total". Two other billboards were put up in the nearby municipalities of Loures and Oeiras, where events related to World Youth Day will also take place.

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Persons: Catarina Demony LISBON, Pope Francis, Pope John Paul II, Francis, Almirante Reis, Manuel Clemente, Catarina Demony, David Latona, Alison Williams Organizations: Portuguese Catholic, REUTERS, Catholic Church, Thomson Locations: Portuguese, Lisbon, Portugal, Loures