Irish Examiner view: Rapporteur speaks out on myriad issues

Will anyone want to fill the gap in child protection policies?

Outgoing Special Rapporteur Conor O’Mahony, whose final report contained a damning critique of his relationships with the Government.

Anyone tempted to volunteer to fill the gap in child protection policies following the decision by Special Rapporteur Conor O’Mahony to stand down may well decide they have better ways to spend their time after reading the damning critique of his relationships with the Government contained in his final report.

Prof O’Mahony, a senior law lecturer in University College Cork who was appointed in 2019, in comments unusually blunt for those normally found in official documents, says departments are “not willing” to discuss significant issues, that his correspondence is ignored, and that publication of his conclusions are delayed, with “negative consequences”.

In his final submission, which was delivered in June, he said that reports he has produced have taken between four and seven months to appear, by which time they can be outdated and cause confusion and induce anxiety among affected individuals.

Among the topics on which there has been slow, or limited, or no response, says Prof O’Mahony, are the terms of an ex gratia scheme for survivors of sex abuse in schools after the Louise O’Keeffe case and on donor-assisted human reproduction and surrogacy. Other areas of dissatisfaction he has shared include the issues of redress for serious ill-treatment and forced labour experienced by children in foster homes; a three-year backlog in Garda forensic examination of computers and devices used to view child sex abuse material; homelessness; trafficking; and parental alienation in custody disputes.

These are in no sense trifling issues and Prof O’Mahony’s expressed frustration speaks to a breakdown between his role and the authorities.

The customers — that’s the public — deserve an explanation about what has happened, and what will happen to prevent any recurrence. In the event that anyone now wants this role.