The chief executive of support organisation One in Four, Deirdre Kenny, has said that the upcoming investigation into abuse in schools could be one of the biggest commissions of inquiry in this country.
Ms Kenny also told RTÉ radio’s News at One that their helpline has been inundated in the last 24 hours, indicating that there could be many more victims who have not yet reported their experience of abuse.
“People are looking to understand what happened in the school that they were in, and people who have come forward for the first time disclosing their abuse are very overwhelmed with emotion and with a sense of grief, grief and loss for the childhood that has been taken from them and their fellow survivors, and also family members who feel very impacted and, again, around conversations they're having in their own homes about what happened in their schools, in the locality.”
Ms Kenny said it was important to include schools not run by religious congregations in the inquiry.
“That's an important move. And there's no reason to say that the culture in other schools was any different. And again, I think it would isolate segments of our communities if we didn't include those schools. Survivors are calling for accountability and transparency, skilled support.
"I think that's what they deserve. Over 150 people came forward to the scoping inquiry and gave very detailed accounts of what happened to them, not just in school, but also throughout their life. And I think it's important that that's acknowledged.”
The figures released in the scoping inquiry were “just a fraction of the reality” and the experience of One in Four was that this area was “very under reported” especially in relation to men.
“We expect that this could be one of the biggest commissions of inquiry that we've seen in this country.”
The report was a testament to the safe environment created by the scoping inquiry for survivors, she said.
“We know from our work in the criminal justice system and in the civil courts, that adversarial systems do lead to re-traumatisation.
"So where you have a situation where a survivor doesn't feel safe and they can't retell the story in a safe way, then we will do further harm. So again, the scoping inquiry has created a good foundation for a positive engagement with survivors going forward for any commission. And we would urge the government to keep that in their focus.”
Ms Kenny said that redress was a really important part of any inquiry, while redress or compensation could not undo the harm, it would at least lead to recognition of their experiences and practical support.
She also expressed the hope that religious orders would have learnt from the lessons of the past and participate in any redress scheme.
For people who had not yet spoken of or reported any abuse they experienced, she urged them to confide in someone they trust, if possible and if not, that there were services who will offer support.
“The report yesterday will have activated old memories or feelings. It may take weeks or months before people realise, actually, I need to do something about this, and it is to reach out to the professionals who understand this issue, to get that support. Or maybe they have a loved one or a friend that I can confide in," she said.
