Chapter 12 — Sisters of Charity

The Sisters of Charity have never issued a general public apology in respect of child abuse. However, the Congregation has issued three specific apologies relating to the criminal convictions of three of its staff, one in Madonna House and two in St Joseph’s, Kilkenny.

The apology in relation to Madonna House was issued in 1994 and read: The Religious Sisters of Charity are deeply concerned and saddened by what has happened to the children at Madonna House. We offer our heartfelt apology to each and every person who has suffered in a situation where we tried to ensure that they would experience warmth, care and support.

The second apology was issued at the sentencing of a male childcare worker in St Joseph’s in 1997: While other Orders might have found that the States of Fear programme or other publications or broadcasts was their moment of realisation, I think it was the criminal conviction of that child care worker that was a very significant moment certainly for me and those other sisters who attended and for the congregation subsequently. For us it was a brutal initiation into the reality of sexual abuse of the most depraved kind. While I would have read the Garda statements that the children made against this child care worker, it became very real when the boys were asked to speak in Court and they described a most horrific litany of terror and hurt and humiliation and pain and powerlessness. It was at that moment I think for us as a congregation it became real. I am not saying we accepted it or understood it, but it became real for us then.

The third apology was issued when another childcare worker from St Joseph’s, Kilkenny was convicted. It read, inter alia: We are appalled that a care worker employed at St. Joseph’s for 9 months from ’76 to ’77 abused children in his care and we are offering counselling services etc. He came to St. Joseph’s as a qualified care worker, had excellent references from his former employees in the UK, and was interviewed by representatives from St. Joseph’s and from the Department of Education ... Peter Tade’s2 abuse of the children at St. Joseph’s has caused untold misery for the men involved. Nothing can make up for what happened to them and we deeply regret their suffering.

Sr Úna O’Neill, Superior General of the Congregation, told the Investigation Committee at The Public Phase I hearing on 7th February 2005 that: The issue of making a public apology didn’t really arise for us. Our response to the emergence of the allegations was twofold. When we received the allegations through legal means we responded to them legally through our solicitors. At the same time we were trying to respond pastorally and that pastoral response was a continuation of what had been happening on the ground with the Sisters who had actually been in these childcare homes. Many of our past residents have maintained their contact with the Sisters who were their carers and that continued and I think some of the Orders have expressed the way in which that continued.

Sr O’Neill stated that the Sisters provided two aftercare centres and a fund for past residents: past residents of our schools can apply for help for ongoing education, for counselling for themselves or their families, grants for those who are experiencing particular problems, with regard to family health, employment, accommodation, contributions towards funerals and burials for those who may not have immediate family, grants for those who may want to set up a little business or whatever, for those who are searching for parents or siblings, and for reunions and holidays.

Sr O’Neill said that the Congregation contributed to the Redress Fund: we had a number of civil cases before the Court at that time ... We had had the experience, I had the experience of attending these court cases and I had seen what that process had done particularly to the men who had taken the cases against us. I had spoken to them about the experience with both of them. I saw what it did with both the volunteers and the staff who had to testify. There was a strong pastoral reason for us not subjecting anybody to that kind of process if we could avoid it. We also felt the definition of abuse was so broad that it would invite many more cases against us and in fact that has proved to be the case. There has been a very, very significant increase in the number of cases that have come in from 2000 up to today, very significant increase for those that had come in beforehand. We also felt that if we didn’t contribute to the scheme, maybe we were wrong in this, we felt that perhaps the Redress scheme would give a partial payment to the children and then they would seek the rest from us through legal means and that would have been the same reason as I have given beforehand. The same thing again I suppose the cases before the courts take a very long length of time as we had experienced and we felt that if the Redress scheme to which we could contribute could be up and running it would mean that those cases would be heard much more swiftly than in the courts. It was our view that this process would be preferable to our past residents and to the staff and sisters than going through the difficulties of the court system and also of course that the substantial amount of money that would be expended in legal fees could be avoided if we did contribute. We felt it would bring finality to all of that.

In their Final Submissions to the Investigation Committee following the hearings into St Joseph’s, Kilkenny and St Patrick’s, Kilkenny, the Sisters of Charity submitted that the sexual and physical abuse that was perpetrated on the children in these Schools was inflicted by parties other than members of the Congregation. Therefore, they stated, ‘the issue of making a public apology did not arise for the Sisters of Charity’.

They stated, however, that ‘the Sisters of Charity are absolutely and deeply sorry that any children in their care were abused in any way’.

They accepted that ‘A certain number of children suffered appalling abuse’. They also submit that the manner in which the Sisters organised and ran their schools led to the risks and incidence of child abuse being minimised and to appropriate action being taken when abuse was discovered.