Johnny Mythen (Wexford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this Bill.

I thank both my colleague Deputy Funchion for her hard work in bringing the Bill forward and all those people who fought for their natural birth right to access their own birth certificate when set against the cruel backdrop of cover-up and distortion of their personal information. We can bury a lot of things, but we cannot bury the truth.

I watched the "RTÉ Investigates" programme on illegal adoptions entitled, "Who am I?"  To say it was disturbing is an understatement. It showed a sickening letter sent back to a couple in America who were asking for their adopted child’s medical file, in which the charity stated that it only dealt with 100% healthy children and if the couple were not satisfied, they could replace him with another one. If this Parliament cannot recognise the cruel, dysfunctional and disorientated people behind this thinking and behind these acts of turning citizens into chattels, then we are no better that the signatories of those who signed the illegal adopted papers and all those who redacted documents. The time has come to stop hiding behind flawed legislation and the misuse of the instrument of  the GDPR to block the right of a person to the knowledge of the very origin of his or her being. The time has come through this Bill to right that wrong. The time has come to give clarity, justice and, above all, the right to a person's natural human instinct to know where he or she belongs and most importantly, to know who delivered him or her into this world.

We cannot bury the truth, nor can we allow this grave injustice to humanity to continue. As a nation we can rectify this wrong. As a Parliament we can rectify this wrong. We must allow the right of adoptees to full access to their natural birth certificates. I ask that each Member search his or her conscience and heart and do the right thing by fully supporting this Bill and to contribute  to restoring people's faith in truth and justice.

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