Fergus Finlay in today’s Irish Examiner has been scrutinizing briefing notes for prepared for incoming ministers by officials in the Department of Finance.
He writes:
Another moment of infamy is highlighted in the 70-410 documents too. On page 144 of the document that is intended to brief the government on the range of outstanding issues, there’s a note almost hidden away, under the heading “Follow-up to Ryan Report (Child Abuse)”. This reveals that additional contributions have been sought (and offered) by the religious orders who ran institutions in which generations of Irish children 070-684 were abused. But it goes on to say that “to date, only €20m of the original cash offers has been received. The offers of property are still being examined in terms of their usefulness to the …”(and the next two paragraphs are blacked out). This is an astonishing revelation. Not far short of 10 years ago Bertie Ahern and Michael Woods did a deal with the religious orders.
Effectively, that deal protected the orders from being sued for everything they have by survivors of terrible abuse. After decades of being swept under the carpet, the history of that abuse was finally becoming clear, and the orders needed a quiet and private indemnity from the government. AND they got it, in the last days of the life of that government just before the 2002 election. In return, they agreed to cough up €128 million, in cash and property, to help meet the expected cost of compensation. Nine years later, we now discover, they have only paid about €20 million. But the State has paid well over a billion in compensation. After the publication of the Ryan and Murphy reports, which revealed not just the decades of abuse but also the shocking history of cover-up by bishops and heads of religious orders, the then government finally took its courage in its hands and demanded that the religious orders should pay up to half of the total bill. In fact, since the publication of those two reports, the religious orders haven’t paid a penny. We’ve had apologies and expressions of regret, endless amounts of PR spin from the religious orders. But they have kept their money in their pockets. Perhaps the two blacked-out paragraphs in the Department of Finance memorandum reveal how the previous government intended to force the religious orders to pay what they owe, morally and legally, to the Irish people.
Yeah, right. I think it’s safe to assume that from the moment that deal was done, they’ve been relying on a nod and a wink. I doubt if anyone will be able to find too much documentation in the files threatening fire and brimstone if the orders don’t pay up. But now we know, at least. And we can demand that our government take the necessary action to force the religious orders to meet their moral commitments. It’s the least that Ireland is entitled to.
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