[IMC-Editorial] LEEDS INFORMATION SEMINAR SEEKS IRISH DUE COMPENSATION FOR INSTITUTIONAL ABUSE

[Alison Mills]

2nd December 2003

 

LEEDS INFORMATION SEMINAR SEEKS IRISH DUE COMPENSATION FOR INSTITUTIONAL ABUSE

 

A series of information seminars began on 1st October in England to find thousands of Irish people who may be eligible for compensation and education grants as survivors of abuse.  The Leeds meeting will take place on Wednesday 3rd December.

 

A member of an Irish organisation for the healing of institutional abuse, Aislinn, will speak at the series of meetings throughout England to raise awareness of the entitlements awaiting some Irish people for abuse received in orphanages and other State institutions.

 

Meetings have already been held in London, Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester in the first part of a major public awareness campaign which will eventually cover all parts of the United Kingdom and the United States.

 

Approximately 150,000-plus children and teenagers went through residential institutions in Ireland between the 1920s and the 1980s.  Many of these experienced abuse at the hands of religious and others while in orphanages, industrial schools and centres for young offenders.

 

It is estimated that as many as 100,000 of those, who went through 100 such institutions, fled Ireland and went abroad, with at least half estimated to have gone to the UK.  But of these, only a proportion appear to be aware of the Residential Institutions Redress Board which has been set up by the State to compensate and assist people who were abused in institutions.

 

To the end of October, the Board had received just 2,165 applications in total, most of which are from the Republic of Ireland.  The awards made by the Board range in value from £6,900 to £139,000.  The average award is £58,000.

 

The closing off point for applications to the Residential Institutions Redress Board will come about in two years' time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ms Christine Buckley of Aislinn will be the lead speaker at the meetings in the UK.  Aislinn is one of the foremost leaders in the campaign in Ireland which led to the Irish Prime Minister's apology to victims, the establishment of the Residential Institutions Redress Board, the Child Abuse Commission, which is investigating the abuse suffered in institutions and nationwide counselling.

 

"Aislinn receives some calls from around the world, including the UK, from people who are vaguely aware that there is a Redress Board.  There needs to be a much greater level of awareness and these information seminars are an attempt to connect with survivors and to make them aware of their right to counselling, education, compensation and assistance in tracing their records," Ms Buckley said.

 

Ms Buckley was put into care at three weeks of age.  At four years old she was sent to the notorious Goldenbridge Industrial School, which was run by the Sisters of Mercy in Dublin.  Whilst there from 1950 to 1964, she suffered severe physical abuse. 

 

Ms Caroline Dolan will also speak at the seminars.  She was taken from London to the Sacred Heart Orphanage in Dublin, from where she was fostered.  Her foster mother was an alcoholic and physically abused her.  Ms Dolan then was sent to Goldenbridge where she remained for a further five years.

 

Many of the victims who fled Ireland once they were old enough to do so ended up in difficult circumstances.  Because they were denied an education, many cannot read or write and may be unaware that there is a compensation process in Ireland.  Hopefully through radio and television publicity, these people will be aware of what is happening in Ireland and will get applications in before the closing date.

 

A campaigning Irish lawyer, Peter McDonnell of Peter McDonnell and Associates will speak at the information seminars and will advise victims for free on how to process their paperwork and achieve justice.

 

Mr McDonnell, who has been practising law for 23 years, is a Dublin based solicitor who has been acting for survivors of sexual and institutional abuse for the past 10 years. He has represented survivors of abuse, processing cases through the Irish courts and before the Residential Institutions Redress Board.

 

Aislinn was set up in 1999 by Ms Christine Buckley and Ms Carmel McDonnell-Byrne, both victims of institutional abuse in Goldenbridge.  Aislinn has been heavily involved in lobbying the Government and religious orders to receive compensation for its members.  Aislinn is both an education and counselling centre and has assisted over 4,000 people since its inception.  Its many services include literacy classes, intervening with the government on behalf of survivors and helping victims trace their parents and families.  

 

Survivors can contact freephone number 0800 328 3537 for further information.

 

INFORMATION SEMINAR DETAILS:

 

DATE

TIME

VENUE

Weds

03.12.03

19.00

Merrion Hotel, Wade Lane, Leeds, West Yorkshire L52 8NH

 

 

Due to the sensitive nature of these information seminars, we regret that the media will be unable to gain access to them.  However, the media will be facilitated by interviews.

 

 


ENDS


 

For further information please contact:

 

Alison Mills

Q4 Public Relations

Tel: 00 353 1 475 1444 or 00 353 86 851 2890

Email: amills at q4pr.ie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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