The Irish Examiner View: Child victims failed for a second time

A poor reaction has served to exacerbate the horror.

It’s 21 years since RTÉ broadcast States Of Fear, a groundbreaking documentary on the horrors inflicted on some of those lost, discarded children consigned to residential homes run by religious orders and, at an arm’s length, supported by the State. The reaction to those Mary Raftery programmes changed Ireland. Shame, deep anger, and no little distress made it impossible to sustain our blind complacency. This society’s conscience was stirred and the fading away of Catholic hegemony began. The outraged reaction justified that over-used word: seismic. Bertie Ahern, the then taoiseach, gave an unprecedented apology on behalf of the State. It was natural to imagine that the issues would be confronted and resolved, so we might assuage at least some of our shame and, maybe, just maybe, some small portion of the victims’ grief.

Earlier this week, RTÉ broadcast two programmes — Redress: Breaking The Silence. They reviewed our response to the uncovering of those outrages and how we addressed them. The programmes revealed ongoing psychological and emotional abuse, undisguised intimidation, collusion, cold-hearted neglect, lifelong trauma, and a culture of disbelief,indifference, and disdain. They also showed that secrecy, that toxin of Irish life, is being imposed again to silence victims and put their testimonies beyond living memory. The programmes rendered the Ahern apology meaningless.