Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

I pay tribute to those who came forward to speak to the Ferns Inquiry to outline the appalling abuse they suffered. I find the Ferns Report deeply disturbing and shocking, not because I am a Minister of State or a Dáil Deputy, but because I am a father of young children. The only times I have been moved to tears during my eight-year political career in this House have been when the victims of institutional abuse have told me their stories. I have been moved by the forgiveness extended by some of those who have suffered this kind of abuse to those who perpetrated such awful acts.

The last speaker rightly said that the abuse by certain people of their powerful positions in society is perhaps the most dangerous and sinister aspect of the contents of the Ferns Report. We need to understand that the era of monopoly power in Irish society, whether it applies in the area of morality, economics or even politics, has definitively come to an end. I hope the people of this country have learnt over the past ten, 20 or 30 years that nobody should be allowed to enjoy monopoly power over individuals or society as a whole. As Ireland matures as a country, its people, including the members of its political class, should say publicly and bravely that they will not allow such events to take place again. We will not allow people to be abused in a vicarious manner, as happened in Ferns, in institutions and, it must be said, in families.

It is often forgotten in the maelstrom of debate and public controversy about institutional abuse that the vast majority of abuse takes place within families. I do not say that to mitigate the cause of the betrayal that occurred in Ferns. We should not forget that appalling abuse can take place between siblings, or can be perpetrated by parents against their children. Not only are all the institutions of State and those who deal with children on a daily basis responsible for ensuring that children are protected, but parents have a responsibility to ensure that their children, as well as other children in their care, are similarly protected.

There is a strong need for people to speak out. We cannot allow monopoly power or monopoly voices to drown out the human rights and dignities of individuals in society who may be the subject of abuse. One of the horrible aspects of what happened in Ferns and other parts of the country, in institutions and in families was that people felt powerless and were afraid to speak out. I send a strong message that people should not be afraid to say what needs to be said. They should be given a chance to speak out. As practising politicians, we should give people such an opportunity. People should not feel inhibited, by dint of what we do in the House or as public representatives, in speaking out and having their stories heard at the highest level or at any other level of their choosing.

The Ferns Report is very sobering reading. I would not recommend to anyone that they read it. A decision on whether to read it is very much a matter of personal choice. The graphic descriptions in the report cut to the core of what we are about as a society. The basis of our society is challenged by the report. Are we prepared to act in ignorance? Are we prepared to ignore? Are we prepared not to listen to the voices of people who have suffered at the hands of abusers of one kind or another? As a society, we must be careful not to become complicit in any kind of institutionalised or systemised practice of abuse ever again. We need to put in place simple reforms to give people an opportunity to speak out about matters of this kind, rather than being drowned out by those who think they possess some moral authority or control over individual lives. I do not say that lightly.

It is important that we do not become over-focused on the church, which continues to have a certain amount of power in Irish society. Most of the people associated with the church have operated in an honest way and have not acted as abusers. The same can be said about the banks, which have been the subject of controversy in this House. I am sure Deputies will accept that most bank workers are honest and decent people who do not perpetrate fraud of any kind. The same can be said of those who are involved with the church. While I do not want make allowances for those who were involved in certain forms of conduct in Ferns, Dublin or elsewhere, it is important to point out that most people associated with the church are not practitioners of abuse.

It is almost a cliché to say in debates of this nature that the character of an institution is defined by how its systems respond to complaints made by people who have chosen to speak up, to highlight certain cases or to make a plea for help. If one reads the Ferns Report, it is clear that the institutions which existed in Wexford utterly failed the victims of abuse. That is a matter of profound sadness for me.

We must build a society that takes responsibility for managing people's expectations. Most people rightly expect that their voices will be heard and their concerns acted on when they speak out about matters of this nature. There is sometimes a tendency, particularly in politics, to empathise with people rather than do something practical or supportive. As a class of people who are gathered in this Parliament to represent the citizens of this country, we need to offer practical support to the people. Practical legislation that will produce practical results is needed if we are to give comfort to parents, people in authority who have jurisdiction over children and people involved in the supervision of children. People need to be reassured that matters of substance such as those in Ferns will be acted on swiftly in a clear, definitive, unbiased and objective manner. We have to make sure there is no covering or shadowing and that nobody makes allowances or fails to proceed with an investigation. We need to replace that culture with a culture of openness about everything. We need to be much more open with ourselves about matters of this nature. This issue is at the heart of how we define ourselves as a people. Are we a Christian and caring people? Are we prepared to listen to the awful things we might hear about the abuse that is taking place?

I would like to comment on a sinister aspect of this issue that has been highlighted internationally. There is evidence to suggest that the perpetrators of child sexual abuse act in a devious and cunning manner. They are not unintelligent people who fit into some Victorian stereotype of the criminal underclass. They cross all our paths in society. Many investigations, including the FBI investigation into people paying with their credit cards to access child pornography on the Internet, have produced evidence that those involved in such crimes are people of high standing in society. Cunning and devious people with responsible positions are often prepared to collude, collaborate and connive with other people to perpetrate various forms of abuse. This is the most sinister aspect of this issue.

We need to be incredibly vigilant in this regard, for example, by arming parents with knowledge and warning them that certain people are prepared to prey on their innocent children. It is not enough for us to say there is a Government response. If this country's political class is in a position of political authority, as it claims to be — it represents the people and elects a Government with the public mandate it achieves — it must dedicate itself to the moral need to educate parents and the public about the existence of certain people and to point out to them that they need to take the first step in terms of bringing cases of abuse to the attention of the authorities. As parents, they need to become aware of the need to protect their own children because there are limits to the role of the State. Those involved in paedophile rings of one kind or another are enormously intelligent, devious and cunning in the lengths to which they go to cover up their activities and to perpetrate further crimes, by procuring and preying on young people. I do not say that lightly. As a parent of young children, I feel we have a responsibility to act quickly and definitively. There should be no showboating on this issue from the political class. It should act with strong moral integrity to tackle this issue in a meaningful way at every level, be it as a constituency Deputy, a Minister or as a citizen. This matter must be coherently addressed.

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