Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Tá mé buíoch as an deis labhairt ar an ábhar millteanach tábhachtach seo.

I wish the Minister well in her endeavours.

Last Friday, the commission of investigation confirmed the worst fears of many of us here when it announced that a significant quantity of human remains had been discovered at the site of the former mother and baby home in Tuam. The remains are those of almost 800 children and babies who were buried in a septic tank with no explanation so far for the cause of their deaths. Mar a dúirt an Piarsach:

Mise Éire:

Sine mé ná an Chailleach Bhéarra ...

Mór mo náir.

Women were denied their rights and they were treated as slaves. Some babies were treated as guinea pigs in medical experiments and many were forcibly and illegally adopted. These citizens were treated like this because they were born or they gave birth outside of wedlock. It was a conservative, mean-spirited, narrow-minded political elite in this State in alliance with the church hierarchies that allowed these anti-women practices to penetrate every facet of Irish life. The system under which this abuse happened was supported, approved and inspected by the State. It happened with the clear sanction and connivance of many who sat in this Chamber. Many of the practices which now give rise to our moral outrage were legislated for in this Chamber. I appeal again for a formal State apology to the victims and survivors of mother and baby homes and other institutions.

The terms of reference relating to the work of investigating all this have to deal with all the issues involved. When Sinn Féin moved a Private Members' motion in June 2014 seeking an investigation into claims about babies buried in Tuam, especially those resulting from the work of Catherine Corless, we said, as did others, that the Government's response was inadequate, and this is now evident. The UN, among others, has said the current investigation does not meet international standards. Tuam was part of a vast network which systematically violated the rights of women and their children and there were upwards of 180 institutions of this kind throughout the State and more in the North. It is imperative that the terms of reference be extended to include all institutions and that the victims and survivors are at the heart of whatever processes we establish. The people of this island owe a huge debt of gratitude to the campaigners, archivists, historians and some journalists who did so much to unearth the horrors, but I especially, most of all, would like to commend the survivors.

I do not have the time to elaborate on this but we continue to fail women and children in this State. We continue to fail to protect women with crisis pregnancies while the Government continues to cut funding for rape crisis and family refuge centres. Some day, we may well have another inquiry into the treatment of people, including children, in direct provision centres, into the failure to provide proper resources or into protection of children with disabilities or mental health issues or into those who are homeless or on hospital waiting lists.

I welcome the Minister's commitment to publish the second interim report of the commission, which examines all the issues, but I would also an explanation as to why it has not been published thus far. Why is there is no Garda investigation? What is happening?

Many of the scandals that have surfaced in recent times have two things in common. They mostly involve disadvantaged or poor people and the Government and the establishment always had to be pulled kicking and screaming to deal reluctantly with the issues involved.

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