Dáil hunger strike - Victim has suffered enough

It is shameful that a man who was put in care by the State and suffered abuse in two institutions in the 1950s and ’60s should have to resort to a hunger strike of more than three weeks outside the Dáil to try to get justice.

Tom Sweeney began his hunger strike outside our national parliament in protest at what he perceived as unfair treatment by the Residential Institutions Redress Board.

Because of the institutional abuse he suffered, Mr Sweeney was paid €113,000 by the Board, which was subsequently reduced by €50,000 when he demanded a full hearing of his case. It was established to make awards to people who were abused in institutions subject to State regulation or inspection.