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Chapter 1 — Establishment of the Commission

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Appointment of new chairperson to the Commission

22

Mr Justice Ryan furnished his review of the workings and procedures of the Commission in November 2003.

23

In summary, he concluded that there were major problems facing the Investigation Committee. If it were to continue unchanged, there would be no prospect of its work being completed within a reasonable time and at an acceptable cost. He suggested a number of changes that were needed to overcome the problems: Amendments to the 2000 Act so as to focus the Investigation Committee on its core function, which was to inquire into abuse of children in institutions. Changes to procedures which would enable allegations to be heard in logical units for hearings (Modules). Publication of interim reports as the work proceeded. Establishment of ‘trust’ between the parties as to the fairness of the hearings.

24

The work of the Investigation Committee was suspended from September 2003 until March 2004. Judgment was awaited in a High Court action brought by the Christian Brothers. This case sought judicial determination, inter alia, of the constitutionality of the Investigation Committee’s approach to making findings of abuse against elderly or deceased Brothers or those who could not properly answer the allegations.

The work of the Investigation Committee post-2003

25

The work of the Confidential Committee continued throughout this time.

26

The Investigation Committee began in March 2004 to engage in widespread consultations, to see if an agreed way forward could be found. The aim was to accommodate the 1,712 complainants who had come forward by that time, together with respondent witnesses, within a reasonable timeframe.

27

The Investigation Committee’s legal team met with representatives of over 20 special interest groups representing complainants, and no consensus emerged.

28

The legal team explained to the groups the practical and logistical problems the Investigation Committee would face if every single person who complained to it were to be heard. The representatives were opposed to any form of selection of witnesses, even though they had no solution to the problems that the requirement to hear every witness imposed.

29

The Investigation Committee also met the solicitors representing complainants. A further complicating factor was that not all firms of solicitors were willing to communicate with the legal team as a collective group. This may give some idea of the difficulties that the Investigation Committee faced in trying to get the Inquiry restarted.

30

The Committee also had meetings with different groups representing respondents against whom allegations of abuse had been made, to apprise them of the situation, to seek agreement, and to invite their suggestions.

The Investigation Committee Policy Paper – May 2004

31

There was no agreement or any realistic proposal acceptable to all of the stakeholders as to how to proceed. However, these meetings revealed a general acknowledgement of the difficulties that had to be overcome. There was consensus as to the problems, even if the solutions were elusive. The various stakeholders expressed goodwill towards the Committee and its efforts to make progress. They were, in addition, reconciled to the fact that they were not going to achieve all that they wanted, and that the Investigation Committee would be obliged to decide on a way forward if no agreement emerged. The majority of the representatives recognised that the Committee had gone to considerable lengths to explore possible solutions and agreement on how to proceed with the Inquiry.

32

At a public meeting held in the Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin, on 7th May 2004, the Investigation Committee announced its intention to make significant changes to deal with the obstacles to its work. The chairperson set out proposals for hearing selected witnesses in the investigation of institutions that had the largest number of complaints made against them; however, the larger institutions had far more complainants wishing to give evidence.

33

At that point in May 2004, the length and form that the hearings would take was difficult to assess. It was not known what, if any, objections were going to be raised. These uncertainties gave rise to some concern in the Investigation Committee, particularly in relation to larger institutions, and whether all hearings could be completed within a reasonable time. This would leave other potential witnesses out of the investigative process.

34

For most of the smaller institutions (i.e. those against whom a small number of complaints had been made), the Investigation Committee believed it could hear all those who had notified the Committee of their intention to give evidence and who had then followed up with statements.

35

At the meeting on 7th May 2004, the Committee published and circulated a position paper on the question of ‘naming and shaming’ abusers, which stated that the Inquiry was not going to be able to complete its work if it proceeded on the basis of naming abusers. The document suggested that, because of difficulties of proof, there would probably be many abusers in respect of whom the evidence fell short. There were risks that people not guilty of abuse could be named. A further point was the disparity that would exist between people who were named – necessarily, a limited number – and the larger cohort of people who had indeed committed abuse (as a matter of probability) but who were not named. These and other points were made in proposing the policy that the Investigation Committee would not name abusers in the report, and would proceed with the investigation on that basis.

36

Time was allowed for submissions to be made, and all parties were asked to assist the Investigation Committee with suggestions that would allow the process to move forward. No substantial submissions were received in respect of the policies outlined above.


Footnotes
  1. Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, Initial Report on Terms of Reference, 7th September 1999.
  2. Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, Report on Terms of Reference, 14th October 1999.
  3. Amendments were also made by the Residential Institutions Redress Act, 2002: See Section 32.
  4. Section 1 of the Principal Act, as amended by section 3 of the 2005 Act.
  5. Section 15(1) of the Principal Act, as amended by section 10 of the 2005 Act.
  6. Section 16 of the Principal Act as amended by section 11 of the 2005 Act.
  7. Section 4(6) as substituted by section 4 of the 2005 Act.
  8. Section 12(1) of the Principal Act, as amended by section 7 of the 2005 Act.
  9. Section 12(1)(d)(iii), as amended by section 7(c) of the 2005 Act.
  10. Section 14, as amended by section 9 of the 2005 Act.
  11. Section 14(1)(a) of the Principal Act.
  12. Section 14(1)(b)–(d) of the Principal Act.
  13. Section 14(1)(e) of the Principal Act.
  14. Section 14(8) of the Principal Act, as inserted by section 9 of the 2005 Act.
  15. Section 14(9) of the Principal Act, as inserted by section 9 of the 2005 Act.
  16. Section 14(11) of the Principal Act, as inserted by section 9 of the 2005 Act.
  17. Section 14(10) of the Principal Act, as amended by section 9 of the 2005 Act.
  18. Section 14(14) of the Principal Act, as inserted by section 9 of the 2005 Act.
  19. Section 14 of the Principal Act, as amended by section 9 of the 2005 Act.
  20. Section 13 of the Principal Act, as amended by section 8 of the 2005 Act.
  21. Section 1(1) of the Principal Act.
  22. ‘Dear Daughter’ was a dramatised programme broadcast in 1996 by RTE which featured Goldenbridge Industrial School.
  23. There were three programmes broadcast by RTE in 1999 in the ‘States of Fear’ series: ‘Industrial Schools and Reformatories from the 1940s–1980s’, ‘The Legacy of Industrial Schools’, and ‘Sick and Disabled Children in Institutions’.
  24. Under the terms of the indemnity agreement reached with the Religious Congregations on 5th June 2002, the Congregations agreed to make a contribution of €128 million towards the redress scheme. This was broken down as follows: cash contribution €41.14 million; provision of counselling services €10 million and property transfers €76.86 million.
  25. An organisation funded by the Congregations that provides counselling for persons who have been abused by religious Orders and Congregations.
  26. This is dealt with in full in the chapter on St Joseph’s Industrial School, Greenmount.
  27. This is a pseudonym.
  28. Cork VEC – Cork Vocational Education Committees.
  29. FÁS – Training and employment authority.
  30. See Third Interim Report, chapter 4.