Cahill: Adams must reveal details

IRA rape victim Maíria Cahill has reiterated her call for the Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams to give details to gardaí of alleged republican sex abusers following her first meeting with a lawyer reviewing how police in the North dealt with her case.

Ms Cahill said she was happy progress was being made after her meeting with lawyer Keir Starmer. The prosecutor has been asked by the North’s director of public prosecutions to review how police acted on Ms Cahill’s claims that she was raped by an IRA man when 16 and there was a cover up.

Mr Starmer said his review included three linked cases involving sex abuse and terror-related charges. He met Ms Cahill and two other alleged victims yesterday. The probe is not expected to be completed until at least next spring.

“I will conduct an independent and robust review of all relevant material and will publish my findings,” the human rights lawyer said.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner after the meeting, Ms Cahill said: “I’m happy that he met with complainants and will keep an open mind and do a review. I welcome the fact somebody was brought in and the integrity of the process is kept up. It vindicates my position on how cases were handled.”

The 33-year-old says she was attacked as a teenager in 1997. She said republican paramilitaries conducted their own inquiry, subjecting her to interrogation and forcing her to confront her alleged attacker.

She recently met gardaí and gave them names of over 30 alleged IRA and Republican abusers, following claims that some individuals were moved across the border.

Ms Cahill said that, despite her claims of a cover-up, she was not surprised by the minor fall in support for Sinn Féin recently.

“Sinn Féin will always hold their core vote. The real issue is about the rape of children.”