GROUPS REPRESENTING former residents of children’s institutions run by 18 religious orders investigated by the Ryan Commission praised the Taoiseach last night but remained sceptical about the congregations following their meeting with him yesterday. Christine Buckley of the Aislinn Centre said last night she was pleased “with the determined effort made by the Taoiseach’’ at yesterday’s meeting and expressed the hope that “the period of procrastination and game-playing of the religious appears to be coming to an end”.
But she was fearful the congregations might emphasise the State’s responsibility for the institutions they managed “in favour of themselves in monetary terms”.
She also believed the congregations “should pay 70 per cent of the cost of the Ryan Commission” because “it would not have been necessary had the religious been honest with us”.
Michael O’Brien of the Right to Peace group said he wasn’t 100 per cent happy with the congregations.
“They know their assets. They should stop pussy-footing around. We need closure. There’s no need for two weeks. The middle of next week would have been enough. We want this ended as fast as possible. People are dying.’’
He feels the congregations should contribute the same amount as the State as “both were equally culpable”.
He described as “a good solid meeting’’ their encounter with the Taoiseach on Wednesday night. ‘’A lot of things were said by the residents.
“I do appreciate that. The Taoiseach has the chance to give us closure. We’ll never get over the hurt but we can move on.
“I’ll never be clean. If there were showers from Parnell Square all the way down O’Connell Street, I’d never be clean.’’
John Kelly of SOCA Ireland felt the congregations had been “vague, ambiguous’’ in their statement after meeting the Taoiseach yesterday. “They’re still prevaricating. They’re going to have to accept they are at least equally culpable with the State for the abuse. They’re going to have to face that, even if it beggars them. That’s the way it has to be,’’ he said.
He said the former residents’ meeting with the Taoiseach on Wednesday had been “very positive’’ and after which he believed Mr Cowen “would take a robust stand with the religious”.
He said that the statement from the Government after yesterday’s meeting with the religious indicated that it was “beginning to take a tough line, which is to be welcomed. It is demanded now”.
Last night Fiona Neary of the Rape Crisis Network gave “a cautious welcome” to the commitments made by the 18 religious congregations yesterday while the One in Four group welcomed the Taoiseach’s recognition of the behaviour of the religious congregations and “his acknowledgment of the attitudes and behaviour of current religious leadership, both during the investigation and since the publication of the Ryan report’’.
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