Horrific child abuse report is published
Wednesday, 20 May 2009
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A report into the abuse suffered by thousands of children in state-run institutions across the Republic was due to be published today in the largest investigation of religious orders to date.
The full extent of the emotional, physical and sexual trauma inflicted on youngsters by Catholic nuns and priests will be unveiled almost a decade after the Child Abuse Commission was set up by the Irish government.
Roughly 2,500 men and women who were abused in schools and institutions all over the country gave evidence to the commission, led by Mr Justice Sean Ryan.
Victims hope the publication of the long-awaited report will finally reveal the truth about the hidden torture they suffered as children.
Maeve Lewis, of support group One in Four, said clients want a well documented acknowledgement of the appalling abuse suffered in the institutions.
“Over 35,000 children from the 1940s onwards were condemned to live under a regime of physical, sexual and emotional abuse and neglect,” said Ms Lewis.
“While these institutions no longer exist, people who are now aged from 30 to 80 years live day by day with the impact their experiences had on their lives.
“If it is a thorough acknowledgement and documents rigorously what people experienced, then it may bring some closure.”
The testimonies of more than 700 witnesses were published in an interim report in 2003.
Hundreds of men and women recalled being beaten on every part of their body with weapons.
Others were sexually abused and some described being gang raped.
More than 100 institutions run by religious orders have been examined by the commission.
Comments
60 Comments
Dear all,
Unfortunately my dad was a so called 'student' in the Christian Brothers school in Cork in the 50's/60's. There is nothing 'Christian' about them. He is no longer around but when he was, he as unable to talk about it. i can only imagine the abuse he suffered and it pains me to my heart. This amongst many other things has prompted me to become a social worker - to protect those children that cannot be protected.
I applaud the individuals that have stood up against the abuse and let it come out into the open. i hope you can seek some further help to assit you to deal with the horrible expereinces that you have suffered.
The church, the institutions, the so called nuns, priests and any indivdual involved, repsionsible etc. should be absolutely ashamed of themselves.
I wish all of you the best for the future/
Posted by Clare | 10.08.09, 11:40 GMT
This is outrageous. The Sisters Of Mercy have not only refuses any responsibility they have told US Sisters that this is not true.
Last Sunday after mass an American Sister of Mercy, formerly part of their delegation at the UN, told me that she did not have to read the report because the Irish sisters she knows told her that it was all false and they were not culpable. These Mercy Sisters have NGO status at the UN. Peace and Justice begins with their own institutions and the ones they ran that victimized residents.
Posted by John LaPointe | 01.08.09, 23:05 GMT
For Info/ My post signed '' Maitiu '' Below refers to the Limerick ''CBS School at Creagh Lane of the 1950s and nothing to do with yesterdays Case in the High Court where the Ex Christian Brother was found Guilty., of Offences against students in the 1960s
Many thanks
Posted by maitiu | 24.06.09, 13:37 GMT
I came through the Christian Brothers system pretty ''messed- up'' in the head. Daily bout's of Hidings and Sexual abuse being endemic. Lay teachers at Creagh Lane School Limerick who could have spoken out did'nt. '' Shame on them. ''Final year we had a Head-Case Brother who gave us mental sums to do in a given time. Some got them all wrong, unable to concentrate, with the Monster overlooking them. We hadnt a Chance. Not to mention the Sexual abuse.
THANKS FOR READING MY SHORT ACCOUNT.
Posted by maitiu | 21.06.09, 13:42 GMT
I am so shocked at the scale of the abuse, that abuse, was so part of the whole system. That so many priests nuns bishops cardinals and the pope obviously accepted this behaviour, I thought just one or two may have been evil to the core but to know know this was an edpidemic, a plague on vunerable defenceless children by angry nasty cruel Non christian worthless individuals
Thank God for this report. May the hypocrates face 'their' God and rot. Long live the Truth.
Posted by Linda | 26.05.09, 22:47 GMT
Those Christian Brothers were up to their same tricks in Australia over the same period of time. and in 1996 the order was reported as having paid out millions of dollars to victims.
It would appear that the brothers learned from that experience.
Posted by Josh | 24.05.09, 12:10 GMT
Total respect to the survivors who fought to get this out in the open. May all who belong to the world's largest cult take note and protect themselves and their families from its abuses. An isolated fall here or there can happen to any group, but this is ages long corruption and protection of a powerful elite. It is not the church of the New Testament. Every Catholic who loves Christ should seek our fellowship with his fellow Christians, outside that dishonourable body.
Posted by Ian M | 22.05.09, 20:45 GMT
The Irish Catholic Church is not contrite. They hide behind mealy mouthed legalistic verbiage prentending to be sorry. They are more concerned about scandal than about the welfare of their victims. We the Irish people must now desert them, teach them a lesson they will never forget. I cannot understand their hold over the people. The Irish people must free themselves from these shackles. We have to have names of the abusers and what an outrageous deal the Irish Government did in 2002.
Posted by Patrick Murphy | 22.05.09, 17:31 GMT
Patrick,
Heny's reasons were selfish and deeply flawed, but corruption in the catholic church of the time was all too real. His new church resonated strongly with the populace and subsequent monarchs found themselves unable to re-convert.
Posted by SteveW | 21.05.09, 16:10 GMT
SteveX, not quite sure what you mean here.
Henry plundered the Churches for cash to do what Spain did a generation before - plunder the Americas. Henry set up his own "yes" men puppet church in the process. He didn't want Rome to have its share. A male heir was a cover (see Eliza1). So Steve, the big 3 were all there sex, politics and religion. He died a repentant Catholic with a Jesuit priest at his bedside.
I'm hoping someone will mention the 90%+ of Ch. Br. who were decent men. Fat chance.
Posted by Patrick | 21.05.09, 13:41 GMT
they should be named! why let them hide? they don't deserve it, these people were brave enough to come foward and tell their stories, and they can't even get closure, knowing their abusers will be punished. what's the point in having a legal system if it's not used? jeeezzzz.
Posted by Grace | 21.05.09, 09:47 GMT
Ellen: "Ireland needs to stop burying its head in the sand!"
Quite the opposite, I'm actually surprised the authorities in Southern Ireland have not continued to try and sweep this issue under the carpet. Better late than never, however the damage done to the reputation of Southern Ireland will take decades to heal.
Posted by micke | 21.05.09, 09:39 GMT
Horrific. This is what happens when you mix church with state.
Posted by McD | 21.05.09, 09:36 GMT
Ireland needs to stop burying its head in the sand! Keeping names quiet (the wicked Christian Brothers!) will not make anything better. It only gives undeserved safe haven to perverted psychopathic criminals who carelessly destroyed countless lives. The 2004 ruling should be overturned immiediately. And it seems to me that offering pay-offs to those victims who agree not to sue the church amounts to blackmail. Shame, shame on the Catholic church for so many reasons!
Posted by Ellen | 21.05.09, 05:31 GMT
Dear Merry of Australia,
You do make me sad, are you merry or simply drunk?
The religious orgs in Oz have run riot in the areas of child abuse ever since they set foot in Australia.
Why not google "broken rites" or "cathchurch", a guide to catholic church publications which even suggests Australian priests are implicated by the report published in Ireland. Possibly playing away from home?
There have been numerous proven court cases involving priestly child abuse in Oz.
Posted by jonno | 21.05.09, 01:59 GMT
Hello Merry as a resident of Australia how long have you been asleep??
People of these same child abusing organisations have been active in Oz for just as long. Have you not heard of "Bindoon, wa"etc.
Go learn about the "Lost Generations" of children exported by the church to Oz.
Get your head out of the sand, or is ignorance bliss?
Posted by jonno | 21.05.09, 01:32 GMT
Vatican authorities should act swiftly to establish a highest-security "Worldwide Pedophile Penitentiary" where convicted pedophile priests from everywhere in the world can be committed to live out their years under the harshest of conditions while seeking atonement for their sins before Judgement Day. This facility, when combined with an unswerving committment policy, should discourage pepedophiles from seeking to enter the priesthood to fufill perverted desires.
Posted by Bruce | 21.05.09, 01:19 GMT
Forget the idiocy of the celibacy, is rubbish. Trying to follow a religion n destroying the children lives. What kind of christian are? True devils disguised as saints.
Posted by Steve X | 21.05.09, 00:36 GMT
Henry the VIII was not so wrong then...
Posted by Steve X | 21.05.09, 00:30 GMT
it's clear that all of this was tolerated and considered normal by Irish society 40-60 years ago,or it could never have happened. The question we should be asking ourselves is: what things are we turning a blind eye to in 2009 that will be considered atrocities in the future?
Posted by Ciaran | 21.05.09, 00:10 GMT
60 Comments