Chronicle of ill-treatment rife up to last decade

CHILDREN were subjected to sickening abuse in care homes, foster care and other settings as recently as the last decade, the report by the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (CICA) has revealed.

Chapters in one volume of the report contains witness reports of abuse in day and residential schools for children with intellectual and physical disabilities, and children who were blind or deaf. Hospitals and foster homes are also mentioned, with children suffering physical and sexual abuse, including rape.

The findings for special needs schools and residential services runs up to the last discharge of a witness in 1993, and found that nine special needs facilities were each the subject of between four and 12 reports, totalling 54 in all, while five facilities were each the subject of a single report.

Of these 59 reports, 13 related to physical and sexual abuse, with 11 other reports detailing physical and emotional abuse and neglect.

In these services, 57 staff – including 33 women – were named by witnesses as being physically abusive.

As for sexual abuse, 36 witnesses said they had endured it while in the service, with 28 staff identified as having carried out the abuse. Two religious brothers were identified as sexually abusive by six separate witnesses. In 16 cases of reported sexual abuse, the perpetrators were care staff, while in 27 cases in was a co-resident.

Neglect and ridicule were also prevalent. One witness said he was locked in an outhouse with animals, while another was left overnight in a washroom as punishment for bed-wetting. In only seven cases was the offender who carried out the abuse removed from the school. Many of the victims have never been involved in an intimate relationship and some have struggled with alcohol, mental health and anger issues.

Regarding children’s homes, 61 witnesses gave evidence relating to 19 facilities, with similar memories of sexual, physical and emotional abuse.

Bullying was also rife.

One witness recounted how he was beaten and raped every Sunday for three years. In all, 43 perpetrators, including nine women, were identified as having sexually abused 29 witnesses.

Twenty-four people, including 16 women, told of abuse at the hands of foster carers, identifying 18 foster families by name.

A total of 15 witnesses suffered sexual abuse in foster care, with more suffering physical and emotional abuse and neglect, or a combination.

Some girls were raped at just five years of age, and in some cases the abuse was perpetrated by other people in the community. At least in the foster care setting complaints were dealt with in a positive manner.

Regarding hospitals, the Commission heard of 33 reports of abuse from 31 witnesses, relating to 18 hospitals. One witness reported abuse in three different hospitals. There were 14 cases of alleged sexual abuse, while abusers ranged from orderlies to doctors.

Worryingly, some witnesses said there was nobody they could talk to about the abuse they experienced.