We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
LAST UPDATE | 31 Jan 2021
THERE HAVE BEEN renewed calls for chairperson of the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes to answer questions after it emerged that audio recordings of personal interviews have been destroyed.
Survivors have expressed anger at the latest development, with some saying they were not informed their testimony would be destroyed.
The Commission’s final report, spanning 2,865 pages, details the experiences of women and children who lived in 14 mother and baby homes and four county homes between 1922 and 1998. It was published on 12 January, nearly six years after the commission was first set up.
Many survivors have criticised the report, in particular conclusions which state there was a lack of evidence of forced adoption and abuse, despite testimonies contradicting this.
Solicitor Simon McGarr said survivors “were all provided with an information leaflet in advance of giving evidence”, adding: “It doesn’t say that the records of their testimony will be destroyed.”
I've been provided with a copy of one of those information leaflets. As you can see, while it does say that the testimony will be recorded and that the witnesses can't take a copy out of the office, it doesn't say that the recordings will be destroyed. pic.twitter.com/VPm9pToWiq
— Simon McGarr (@Tupp_Ed) January 30, 2021
How naive we were in October campaigning to #unsealthearchive so that (among other things) survivors could access their transcripts of evidence.
— Dr Maeve O'Rourke (@maeveorourke) January 30, 2021
Transcripts didn’t exist: the Commission audio recorded 550 people and then deleted all.
If you wish to contact @adoptionrights👇 https://t.co/Jj5G0cpT4c
The destruction of the audio was reported this weekend by the Irish Examiner, which said the vast majority of the 500-plus audio recordings of survivors’ personal testimonies have been destroyed.
Yesterday, TheJournal.ie reported that babies who died at Cork County Home were buried in the same coffins as adults, or in coffins containing amputated limbs.
‘Adding insult to injury’
Fianna Fáil Senator Erin McGreehan has reiterated calls for the chairperson of the Commission of Investigation, Justice Yvonne Murphy, to appear before the Oireachtas Committee on Children, Disability, Equality and Integration.
Justice Murphy was invited to appear before the committee in recent days.
Senator McGreehan, who is a member of the Committee, said: “The destruction of audio recordings of the personal interviews given by survivors of mother and baby homes is truly phenomenal. This report has not met any standards of decency or justice due to very obvious contradictions in the Executive Summary.
“To add insult to injury the voices and words of women who were interviewed have been destroyed. I personally find it hard to believe that this has happened.
“As far as I believed, the women were to receive copies of their testimonies and now that opportunity is gone. One of the many problems with the report was that the women’s testimonies were not accounted for properly and now we have no way of proving this.
“This is a report that the State has paid for and the authors should be accountable and answer very legitimate questions.”
On Wednesday, Kathleen Funchion, the chairperson of the Oireachtas Committee on Children, noted that Justice Murphy is not compelled to appear before the committee but she hopes the former judge will.
Speaking to TheJournal.ie, Funchion said there is a lot of hurt and anger among survivors on foot of the report’s publication.
“People were led to believe that the reason it was going to take so long was because everything was going to be gone through with a fine tooth comb, it would be really well put together, really well researched and analysed.
“And it just seems like, at the end of the day, it was just rushed, or that’s how it reads.”
TheJournal.ie has contacted the Department of Children and the Commission for comment.
Redress
Speaking on RTÉ’s This Week programme today, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the government “want to do everything we possibly can to follow up on the recommendations that have been made” in the report.
Martin said this response will include passing tracing and information legisaltion – due to be debated in the Oireachtas in the coming weeks – and redress.
The Taoiseach said a “historical recognition of the wrongs that were done” will include financial compensation for survivors.
“An interdepartmental committee has been established by Minister O’Goram in relation to that in terms of coming forward with proposals around that within a two-month period,” Martin said.
He added that Children’s Minister Roderic O’Gorman has written to the religious orders in question “seeking a contribution from them” for the redress fund.
However, he would not be drawn on what percentage of the fund he thought the orders should pay.
“The State also has responsibilities and we do have to fulfill those in respect of recognising the injustice and the harm that was done to many survivors.
“We have to work out the precise nature of the recognition scheme that we’re developing before we can get into precise figures,” Martin stated.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Almost as if they’re trying to hide something…
@Rochelle: What Else,.
We used to have a saying in a place I worked
“If it’s not written down, it never happened”
Hopefully the majority took a copy of the recording and these can be combined, transcribed and put online.
Destroying these recordings is akin to the four courts being destroyed. Valuable records are gone forever.
@Sequoia: No point writing anything if others subsequently don’t read… the survivors were told they told they could _not_ take a copy of the recording. It says so in the article.
This is a shambles. Heads should roll!
@AJ: Unfortunately nothing will happen. That’s how things work here and the people of this country stand back and let it happen.
@David Corrigan: Agreed, only I’d go a step further and say the sheep who continue to vote for FFG, regardless of their actions, are complicit. Nobody can feign ignorance any more.
Its all like its a clear plan to try bury as much evidence from victims as they can, outside if whats in the reports.
It is deliberate destruction of evidence. Even the investigation commission is corrupt.
@Jules: A white-wash, with original testimonies destroyed so no-one can verify the report for themselves.
It’s an absolute disgrace. It should be announced publicly as to who was responsible for making that decision and they should be made to answer as to why in the hell they thought it was a good idea. Well we all know the reason why. They seem to be going out of their way to hurt these people further.
It seems the norm to destroy evidence in this country. Unfortunately no one again will be held to account. Remember when the criminal case of banker Sean Fitzpatrick collapsed when evidence was shredded by the state ..An outcry for a few days and then disappeared.
@Donal Desmond: the outcry hardly lasted for a few days, it was the subject of a retrial and oireachtas hearings, and hence media scrutiny and comment, over a number of years in fact
@D. Memery: Seanie was a worried man alright. Comical caper.
@D. Memery: He still walked free…The media coverage was nil.
That’s what you get from ffgg GOVERNMENT, people really need to wake up to this shower.
@Pauline Fedigan: They don’t care.
Did you ever notice how these articles are avoided by the blatant FFG followers.
10 comments on this.
Check out the number of comments on banning pets for tenants. That’s the kind of thing they really get their teeth into.
@Pauline Fedigan: Now, if only everybody voted for S.F, 0r better still, was made to vote for S.F.
This is an outrageous cover-up. I assume the Commission and its chairperson are safely beyond questioning by any authority but let’s hope we still have news media to shine a light on this disgraceful abuse of power.
The Catholic Church in Ireland may have had some of its controls exposed and some of its privileges limited but there are still powerful and influential secret societies still operating – and I mean the Knights of Columbanus, Opus Dei etc etc etc.
@Bramley Hawthorne: Agree totally, they should be Vetted by the survivors.
A rotten little country we are.
@Fr.Todd Unctious: From a; Rotten Religion.
@ÓDuibhír Abú: Agreed
Shameful it appears this commission was set up to fail to cover up the failings of the church & state.
Why do the authorities continue to kick out at the victims of these crimes. Sick sad individuals.
If this is allowed to happen it just shows that it was people of authority and the arm of the state that were complicit in this horrible period and that they and their actions will not be brought to account and not “All of us” as Micheal Martin put it. Such an awful phrase for a leader to put on the people. Sweep, sweep, nothing to see here. Sickening.
Section 45 of the Commissions of Investigation Act 2004 states:
(1) If a tribunal is established to inquire into a matter all or part of which was within a commission’s terms of reference, all evidence received by and all documents created by or for the commission relating to the matter or that part of the matter shall, at the request of any member of the tribunal, be made available to it by—
(a) the specified Minister, if the commission has been dissolved, or
(b) the commission, if not already dissolved.
(2) Nothing in this section prevents a commission whose terms of reference are amended under section 44 (2) from retaining copies of any evidence or documents made available by it to a tribunal of inquiry.
(3) Evidence that is received by a commission in accordance with this Act or with its rules and procedures and that is made available to a tribunal under subsection (1) is deemed to have been received as evidence by the tribunal in accordance with the Tribunals of Inquiries (Evidence) Acts 1921 to 2004.
So after we exhume these alleged double burial plots to ascertain if this commission of inquiry where given false evidence. We can think about a tribunal after we check if more lies are being used protect church\state intuitions.
Then again will survivors want to fight on or settle for a whitewashed investigation and what little compensation is offered?
@leartius: I think this act is actually the issue, a commission of investigation takes and hears evidence in private, whereas a tribunal of inquiry does so in public, this was also why originally the records were to be sealed. Could the destruction of the recordings be in line with the fact it was a commission rather than tribunal?
Is Justice Murphy a practicing Catholic by any chance ?
@Itsonlyme: I wonder are some of them members of; Knights of Columbus, or Opus Dei, Knights Hospilar, secrets sects of Roman Church.
No one person to blame/systemic failure/lessons learned/moving forward/.
Did I miss anything?
@Gods Curse: Yes, the last Century.
A kick in the teeth for the survivors.
What would happen if each survivor made a sworn afidavif in the presence of a solicitor? Could they be combined in a historic record later?
Church and State continue to disgust me with everything thy do
Well said, bring the; United Nations, OH, wait no, the Vatican has a Permanent Observer Seat at the; United Nations. Are they all in the same; Bed.
Definitely state collusion in a cover up, disgusting. Should be a outside panel of investors from other countries!
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
have your say