Seanad debates

Thursday, 20 October 2005

10:30 am

Photo of Brian HayesBrian Hayes (Fine Gael)

I do not want to pre-empt the report that will be published next week concerning the sexual abuse of children in the Ferns diocese over a period of 20 or 30 years. However, I ask the Deputy Leader why there has been no inquiry into clerical abuse in the Dublin diocese given that a firm commitment was given to the victims in questions more than three years to establish such an inquiry, following revelations concerning a significant number of priests in the Dublin diocese, dating from the late 1950s. At the time, the Government, correctly, said a tribunal was out of the question, and the mechanism proposed by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform was the Commissions of Investigation Bill which subsequently passed into law.

I say this in the context of next week's report on events in Ferns. There are implications for the Catholic Church on the question of celibacy. There also serious questions for the State and Garda authorities arising from the way in which evidence from children was not adequately processed. We need an explanation from the Government as to why there has been no inquiry in the Dublin diocese, and possibly other dioceses.

We learned yesterday of the abduction of Mr. Rory Carroll in Iraq. I am sure everything is being done by the Government and all authorities to ensure his safety and release. Mr. Carroll is known to us through his father, Mr. Joe Carroll, a distinguished parliamentary correspondent of The Irish Times who reported from this House for many years. This abduction highlights the danger for journalists in the Iraqi war zone and the bravery that a small, dedicated group of international journalists has shown in ensuring the truth is reported from that area. We hope for Mr. Carroll's safety and speedy return to his family.

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