Witnesses at a child abuse inquiry should not be offered immunity from prosecution, victims have said.
Survivors said they oppose deal-making unless there are compelling reasons for doing so for an individual case.
The
Executive announced last December that it would hold an inquiry and
appointed a
taskforce to consider how it should be taken forward.
The
decision followed the Ryan Report in the Irish Republic which uncovered
decades of
abuse in Catholic and state-run institutions.
The
victims' submission to the taskforce said: "Anything short of an
independent, public, judge-led inquiry, supported by a panel of people
with acknowledged expertise in the challenging and sensitive issues
which will be covered, will fail to provide the necessary transparency
and would not enjoy the confidence of those who lost their childhoods at
the hands of those who were meant to be caring for them."
It said
the victims' voices should be heard and must include the possibility of
consequent prosecution.
The inquiry should also be able to pronounce on
the failings of the system which allowed the abuses to take place and
make recommendations to ensure such behaviour does not happen again.
The
Survivors and Victims of Institutional Abuse in Northern Ireland lobby
group suggested the establishment of a panel of lawyers with different
expertise and interests.
Their submission added: "Survivors are
opposed to immunity deals being offered to individuals or institutions
in exchange for cooperation with the inquiry unless there are compelling
reasons for doing so in relation to particular witnesses, to be dealt
with on an individual case-by-case basis.
"It is important that
the inquiry's work is not hampered by alleged perpetrators refusing to
give evidence or answer certain questions on the grounds that they could
be incriminating themselves."
The inter-departmental taskforce
was set up in December by the Executive and it is working on the options
for an inquiry.
It aims to bring forward recommendations before the
summer recess and the new Executive will consider them.