The Catholic Bishops' Conference of Japan said Monday it will open an internal investigation into sexual abuse among its ranks against children in the country.

The standing committee of the bishops' conference decided Thursday at a meeting in Tokyo that it will quickly launch an "in-depth investigation" in all 16 dioceses in Japan. Five reports of sexual abuse were made when the entity conducted questionnaire surveys in 2002 and 2012 throughout its dioceses.

The Roman Catholic Church has been facing accusations of child sexual abuse and cover-ups around the world, and condemnation for not acting quickly enough. Thousands of people are thought to have been abused by priests over many decades.

Details of the upcoming probe in Japan, including the starting date and concrete process, will be decided later, with the bishops' body considering seeking cooperation from external parties.

The five reported abuse cases will likely be revisited as in-depth interviews with the victims and punishment of the perpetrators were not undertaken when the questionnaire surveys were conducted.

The decision comes about a month after the Roman Catholic Church held the unprecedented "Protection of Minors in the Church" conference, where Pope Francis recognized sexual abuse of minors as a "widespread phenomenon" and called for an "all-out battle" to defeat it.

The pope is scheduled to make his first official trip to Japan in November.