State and Church collusion to harass child abuse victims

It’s tough to watch and tough to read. Not only did horrific abuses happen but those that then testified were 1) told if they wanted compensation they could not go public and 2) They got grilled by barristers as if they were criminals. Your tax money made all of this possible.

Seven barristers.

Throwing questions at us.

Non-stop.

I tri.. attempted to commit suicide, there’s the woman who saved me from committing suicide, on me way down from Dublin, after spending five days at the commission. Five days I spent at the commission. They brought a man over from Rome, ninety odd years of age, to tell me I was telling lies.

What may prove to be a turning point. Michael O’Brien from Fianna Fáil talks about what he went through during the commission:

Full Transcript via Will Knott

—Start of transcript

Mr. Chairman, I’m surprised at the minister there now.

First of all Mr Minister (directed at Minister Noel Dempsey) you made a bags of it in the beginning by changing the judges. You made a complete bags of it at that time, because I went to the La Foy commission and ye had seven barristers there, questioning me and telling that I was telling lies, when I told them that I got raped of a Saturday, got a merciful beating after it, and then stuffed…

… he came along the following morning and put holy communion in my mouth.

You don’t know what happened there. You haven’t the foggiest, you’re talking through your hat there. And you’re talking to a Fianna Fáil man, a former councilor and former mayor you’re talking to, that worked tooth and nail or you, for the party that you’re talking about now. Ye didn’t do it right, ye got it wrong.

Admit it.

And apologize for doing that. Because you don’t know what I feel inside me. You don’t know the hurt I am.

You said it was non-adversarial.

My God.

Seven barristers.

Throwing questions at us.

Non-stop.

I tri.. attempted to commit suicide, there’s the woman who saved me from committing suicide, on me way down from Dublin, after spending five days at the commission. Five days I spent at the commission. They brought a man over from Rome, ninety odd years of age, to tell me I was telling lies.

That I wasn’t beaten for an hour, non-stop by two of them.

By two of them.

Non-stop from head to toe without a shred of cloth on my body.

My God minister.

And could I speak to you (comment directed to Leo Varadkar, Fianna Gael), and ask your leader, would you stop making a political football of this.

You hurt this when you do that.

You tear the shreds from inside our body.

For God’s sake, try and give us some peace.

Try to give us some peace and not to continue hurting us.

That woman will tell you how many times I jump out of the bed at night with the sweat pumping out of me. Because I see these fellas at the end of the bed with their fingers doing that (gestures) to me. And pulling me in to the room, to rape me, to bugger me and bate the shite out of me. That’s the way it is.

And you know what?

You know what, sometimes I listen to the leader of Fianna Fáil. I even listened to the apology. T’was mealy mouthed, but at least t’was an apology.

At least t’was an apology.

The Rosminians said in the report, they said they were easy on us. The first day I went to them. The first day to Rosminians in my home which is Ferryhouse in Clonmel, ’cause its the only home I know. He said “you’re in it for the money”.

We didn’t want money.

We didn’t want money. We wanted the pr… someone to stand up and say “yes, these fellas were buggered, these people were ra…”

Little girls. My daughter, oh sorry, my sister. A month old when she was put in to an institution. Eight of us from the one family, dragged by the ISPCC cruelty man. Put in to two cars, brought to the court in Clonmel. Left standing there without food or anything, and the fella in the long black frock and the white collar came along and he put us in to a van.

Not a van, a scut truck, I don’t know what you call it now. And landed us below with two hundred other boys. Two night later I was raped.

How can anyone…

You’re talking about constitution. These people would gladly say “yes” to a constitution to freeze the funds of the religous orders.

This state, this country of ours, would say “yes” to that constitition if you have to change it.

Don’t say you can’t change it.

You’re the governement of this state. You run this state. So for God’s sake stop mealy mouthing. ‘Cause I’m sick of it.

I’m sick of it.

You’re turning me away from voting Fianna Fáil which I have done from the first day that I could vote. Because. And you know me. You know me Mister Minister. You’ve met me on a number of ocassions. So you know what I’m like.

— End of transcript

9 Responses to “State and Church collusion to harass child abuse victims”

  1. Justin Mason says:

    good on this man for speaking up and pouring shame on the Minister.

    also, check out this recording of Michael Woods on saturday claiming that the Brits are to blame:

    http://taint.org/2009/05/28/005055a.html

  2. TUG says:

    He says: “Remember Wexford”, at the very end… It doesn’t appear on this transcript but it’s in the Youtube clip… Is that some kind of veiled threat to Dempsey? What in the hell could have possibly happened in Wexford?

  3. Mike says:

    Well done to that man for having the courage to speak the truth
    Shame on the evil scum who committed these barbaric crimes against children

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  5. Emma says:

    It’s just…harrowing, reading that, watching it. That man is so brave.

  6. Mary says:

    I think that man is amazing. For somebody of his age and his upbringing to battle on against the hurdles he faced – and to still have balls to stand up to a senior member of the party he canvassed for – is incredible. Really hope that, out of all this pain, we as a people can learn from the mistakes made in the past

  7. Tom says:

    Even today children are still not being protected.

    It’s still happening today when the Family Law Courts (FLC) allow a mother to abuse courts orders for the last 3 years and do nothing about it. They will not listen to evidence of a child being mentally abused by its mother. So what do you do, take the FLC judges to the High Court or the European Court of Human Rights.

    Department of Health and Department of Justice take note.

  8. Cormac says:

    Great courage.

    I think RTE should reconsider their decision to axe Q&A after this. What other programme on RTE will allow such a discussion again?

  9. colmdaly says:

    I am being put trough a current persecution. Two years ago my Solicitor and family destroyed my settlement and life recovery by trying to steal control of the settlement fund they where extremely mentally cruel. If I acn be provided an e-mail I an send a document outlinin g this and ten years of damges \by the system covering up for a multi offender and still are with my families support. Have being tryng to get action from authorities but am being ignred. I live long haul from Ireland so easy target