Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Bill requires survivors to waive the entitlement to initiate litigation in order to access the redress scheme. As Senator Black pointed out, and as Sinn Féin pointed out in previous amendments, the position that has been taken by Government here can be contrasted to the symphysiotomy payment scheme, which did not require or compel any woman to forgo her right to initiate legal proceedings.Therefore, the introduction of a waiver to this scheme is inconsistent with previous schemes and, as discussed by Senator Black, risks violating the right to accessing justice. The UN Committee Against Torture found that waivers imposed in the context of the residential institutions redress board, an ex gratia Magdalen laundries redress scheme, were unenforceable. It also stated that judicial remedies must always be available to victims, irrespective of what other remedies are available. Waivers in this context are not justifiable and should not bar victims from seeking to further vindicate their human rights.