Church ‘not alone to blame’ over abuse

THE role of the Irish state and society in enabling the abuse and neglect of tens of thousands of children in religious-run institutions has come under the spotlight in an Amnesty report.

The In Plain Sight report, commissioned by the Irish section of the international human rights group, examines the Ferns, Ryan, Murphy and Cloyne Reports into abuses by Catholic priests and religious in dioceses and institutions, but says the Catholic Church was not alone to blame.

Colm O’Gorman, the executive director of Amnesty Ireland, said some of the early responses to the four reports had amounted to “scapegoating and two-dimensional blame”.