UN torture committee calls for independent probe into Magdalene abuse

The United Nations Committee Against Torture has called for an independent investigation into the Magdalene Laundries and allegations of abuse there.

The group today published its findings following the first examination of the Irish state under the UN Convention Against Torture.

It also called on the Government to "prosecute and punish" the perpetrators of the alleged offences at the laundries.

The Justice for Magdalene (JFM) survivor group has welcomed the report and is calling on the Government to immediately establish a statutory inquiry into the alleged abuses.

It has also called for a formal apology to be issued to survivors of the laundries.

"The UN torture committee has added its voice to the Irish Human Rights Commission’s to remind the Irish government that the women who spent time in Magdalene Laundries have human rights which demand respect today," said JFM spokesperson Maeve O’Rourke.

"Having suffered torture or ill-treatment, in which the state directly participated and which it knowingly failed to prevent, the women have the ongoing right to an investigation, an apology, redress and treatment with dignity.

"I am hopeful that, before it is too late, the G overnment will honour its obligations to these women who suffered such injustice in the past.”