Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to this debate. We are reflecting on a very difficult time in Irish society. While we are talking specifically about Tuam in this debate, we are aware that this kind of pain and suffering was endured by people all over the country. Every time we debate what happened in the Magdalen laundries or in institutions like Bessborough, I am reminded of a lengthy conversation I had when I was 18 or 19 with an older and wiser man when we were working on a farm. He passed away approximately 15 years ago, but he would be in his mid-90s now if he was still alive. During the conversation in question, he reflected on what happened in society in the 1940s and 1950s. As the previous speaker said, we did not think at that time that what was perpetrated in the 1940s and 1950s was continuing and would continue up to the 1990s. John Joe Bradley suggested to me that when we were at our most Catholic, we were at our least Christian. That phrase has rung true to me since then. Families and individuals were ostracised from society. We cannot imagine or attempt to put in words in this House or in any other commentary the pain and suffering encountered by these women and their families, including the children involved. When we hear anecdotes and stories about the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, we often hear the phrase "the baby died", but in some cases it subsequently emerges that the baby was sent to America or elsewhere. Nobody really knows where these babies went. I read Justine McCarthy's very touching article at the weekend and I studied it again at length last night. She wrote about the pain experienced by her family and other families all over the country.

What are we to do as a society when we learn more about what happened in Tuam and elsewhere? Unfortunately, we cannot undo the past. We can acknowledge the pain and suffering that was inflicted because of society's norms and we can consider who generated or perpetuated those norms and ordained that society should follow them. We need to reflect on the society we have been elected to this House to represent. Without wishing to bring religion into it, I would like to emphasise the need to ensure, in so far as is humanly possible, that the Christian ethos of caring for those who are less well-off and need our support is foremost in our minds. Is today's society doing everything it can to ensure children, women and men are not suffering? Is solid support being provided to families that are under duress or stress for various reasons? What can we do for the memories of the babies in Tuam and elsewhere? How can we best enshrine the memories of the women who had to go into these places? Should we build a monument or should we do good in society by ensuring, in so far as is humanly possible, that this kind of scheme of society's norms is not perpetrated on any future generation of people? We should reflect deeply on the many lessons that are to be learned from this episode. As we seek a fitting monument, we have to make sure Irish society grows from the awful cast that has been put upon us as a result of what has happened.

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