Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

The publication of the report into the mother and baby homes marks a hugely important point in our country's history and the path towards justice for all our citizens. While the women and children in the homes and institutions have never had any doubt about the abuses and horrors that took place behind their doors, this report now brings together many of their stories and lived experiences and lays them bare for us all to see. The injustices and horrors that were forced on women by the hands of the State and the church, hands that should have been there to help, support and take care of them, are a stark reminder of our dark side. The report was harrowing to read, but for that to be one's actual life experience, for that to have been one's introduction to motherhood, a period that should be joyful, must have been devastating.

I would like to acknowledge the bravery of the survivors, their children and survivor groups and, in particular, the tireless work of Catherine Corless and Philomena Lee. These were women who never stopped fighting for their own children and the children of others. Their strength shines through the pages of the report. I would also like to remember those who did not survive to see today, including the babies, women and families who are not around to hear this debate, discussion and apology. I say to them that I am sorry.

In his response to the report yesterday, the Taoiseach stated:

The regime described in the report was not imposed on us by any foreign power. We did this to ourselves, as a society.

This is a sentiment and theme, unfortunately, that runs through the commission report. The report talks about how institutions provided refuge when the families of women did not. A refuge is somewhere of safety. It states that there is no evidence that the women were forced to enter mother and baby homes by the church or State authorities. It says that women were admitted to mother and baby homes and county homes because they failed to secure the support of their family and the father of their child. I would like to point out that nearly 12% of the women who went through the doors of those homes were children. They were raped. To expect that they would be the ones to ensure they were looked after by their families is not acceptable.

The report, in several instances, and the Taoiseach, in many of his comments yesterday, fail to acknowledge fully that the fundamental responsibility of protection of its citizens lies with the State and that the culture of a society is moulded and shaped by the most powerful institutions of the State, namely, the government and the church. A State and church which operated hand in glove to implement a State policy of shame, blame and misogyny was one that facilitated and oversaw the horrific treatment of women and children in these homes. There can be absolutely no doubt that the State's policy was one of shame. The State established, funded and regulated these institutions and it outsourced its responsibility to religious organisations. The buck stops with the State, and the State needs to own that responsibility.

I welcome many of the points that have been made here today. However, until the Government's first reaction to an instance like this is not to say, "Well, we were all complicit", then we really have much more work to do. This report represents only a step in the long journey that these women and their families are taking. The survivors need time to digest and take on board the report and its recommendations and that may take weeks. I ask the Government, please, to listen to what the survivors are saying and to be led by their needs and their voices. They have clearly outlined the next steps towards a restorative justice process. It starts with legislating for full and unfettered access to their records. Proper implementation of EU GDPR rights will be required. I maintain that very little legislative change is needed to cover the GDPR requirements. The GDPR applies as standard. Every single person in this country has rights to their own information and that needs to be part of the Government's response in this matter. It must not spend another year looking at what new legislation we need to implement. The legislation is in place; the Government just needs to apply it.

The church needs to release its records on survivors and to co-operate in full. Survivors must be provided with a comprehensive redress and reparation scheme that meets their needs entirely. We must learn from the mistakes of the past and the past redress schemes, many of which caused further trauma to survivors. The re-traumatisation of survivors must stop now. Putting survivors front and centre of the process will be crucial to its success and to providing the security and certainty many survivors need at this time. These are the things we can do. We cannot go back and change what happened to the survivors and their families. We can only give them our most heartfelt apology, try to repair the trust, provide them with access to justice and support them as they continue on their path to healing. That must be the aim of the Government.

It is within our power to ensure that other vulnerable women and children do not experience such incredible disadvantage, discrimination and State-sponsored human rights abuses in today's Ireland. Women and children in this country still suffer because of the policies of the State. A total of 90,000 children live in consistent poverty in Ireland today. Some 4,000 children are homeless. More than 7,000 people live in direct provision. The latter has been described by many as the Magdalen laundries of contemporary Ireland. I want to make it absolutely clear that society does not condone the actions of this and previous Governments when it comes to the handling of these issues. Society wants the Government to fix them. It is within our power to make sure that whoever is Taoiseach in 20 years' time does not have to stand, as the Taoiseach is standing today, and apologise for the actions of his or her Government. The Taoiseach should use this moment to create a better way.

I also call on the Taoiseach to recognise the State’s failings, past and present and to listen to the survivors, to their asks and their needs. He needs to recognise what needs to improve and to commit to doing so without delay and to make those changes. Otherwise his apology today may amount to just another apology on top of one apology after another. I ask him to make it matter. Women and children deserve better and as one survivor, Sheila O’Byrne, put it yesterday, it is time to right the wrongs.

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