MORE than 420 former residents of the Magdalene
Laundries have applied to be included in a state compensation fund.
Meanwhile, the Department of Justice's special helpline has
received almost 1,100 calls about the fund since it was established last
month.
The department invited former residents to register a preliminary
expression of interest in receiving benefits from the fund and so far
424 women have registered their interest.
They were asked to give details of which laundry they were resident
in, the dates when they were there and whether they have any records to
support their application.
Ten Magdalene Laundries and St Mary's Stanhope Street, a laundry that
operated in the Religious Sisters of Charity's training centre, are
covered by the fund.
In cases where laundry records are not available to verify that an
applicant was a one-time resident, state records, including court
records and those from industrial schools, will be used.
Damage
Mr Justice John Quirke has been asked to advise the Government on
the establishment of the fund and is due to report back in mid-May.
The Magdalene Survivors Together group wants a payment of €20,000 for
each year that a woman worked without wages in a Magdalene laundry as
well as a lump-sum payment of €50,000 each for psychological damage. It
said the maximum amount paid to any woman would be €200,000.
The Cabinet will not decide on the size of compensation payments
until it receives Mr Justice Quirke's report.
However, junior health
minister Kathleen Lynch has already indicated that the Government will
be unable to afford a huge bill running to over €100m.
She said former residents should receive a range of supports for their needs as well as financial compensation.