Abuse survivors to consider taking case to Europe
A meeting of all abuse survivors has been arranged for Sunday week in Liberty Hall, Dublin, at which proposals for extending their campaign will be considered. Taking their case to Europe will be one of the options under consideration.
“Our priority now is to establish the complicity of state in institutional abuse,” said spokesperson John Kelly yesterday.
“The dogs in the street know what went on for years but we now need to nail down the State’s involvement in it.”
Describing the Department of Education as an “indictable party” to the decades of abuse, Mr Kelly said his organisation had always objected to the inquiry being under its control, and their view in this respect had not changed.
“We always wanted the department kept out of the whole process. It was a flawed process from the beginning. It was a bit like having an inquiry into smoking deaths controlled and paid for by the tobacco industry.”
Mr Kelly accused the department of trying to distract his organisation from their prime goal and said that it had withdrawn its offer of financial and other aid to SOCA when the organisation raised objections to certain aspects of the tribunal.
Mr Kelly said that his organisation was particularly anxious to view the communication and documents exchanged between the department and religious orders.
“It is clear that the department knew of abuse from the mid-sixties. What we need to establish is the extent of that knowledge.”
Mr Kelly added: “If they don’t give us that we will go to Europe and get justice elsewhere.
“If the tribunal is not good enough for Justice Laffoy it is not good enough for us.”
The organisation’s British spokesperson, Patrick Walsh, said that its decision not to get involved with the Government sponsored National Office for Victims of Abuse had been vindicated by Justice Laffoy’s resignation.
“If we had agreed to turn Irish-SOCA into a marketing tool for government, our activities would have received full financial backing. There is a high price to pay for independence, but it’s worth it in the end.”
