IRISH WOMEN SURVIVORS SUPPORT NETWORK IN BRITAIN
From Cllr Sally Mulready
London Irish Centre
Dear Editor
As I sat in my home in East London watching Cardinal Brady tell the Irish nation what was in the Pope’s long awaited letter, I thought of the thousands of Irish people, hurt damaged and defiled who fled Ireland after a childhoods of unbearable and unimaginable brutality at the hands of Catholic priests, nuns and Christians brothers.
I visualised and knew they would be sitting in their homes all over Britain watching as I did, looking for every word that would be recognition of their pain, their suffering and their struggle to live ‘normal’ lives with their families, their children and in their communities. I know many of them would have wept as I was moved to do, unable to articulate whether the Pope’s letter made the hurt and the ever present painful memories seem any less so by his apology .
After a day of reflecting on the Pope’s letter , I find I cannot be satisfied. I know it has not taken away the pain and though the Pope endeavoured in that very sincere and Pontifical Way to express sorrow , remorse and even pity to the Survivors , in the end the protection and the renewal of the Catholic Church and the failure to acknowledge that crimes against children were being covered up, were the paramount messages I discerned from his letter. I am very disappointed and hurt by the inadequacies of the Pontiffs letter. The justice survivors seek cannot be obtained merely through prayer and other ecclesiastical reflections on a so called Higher Authority. Cannon law has shown itself to be corruptible and not always on the side of truth . It will not in itself bring justice.
But I am an optimistic and determined soul. And there are were some hopeful indications that the Pope had begun to understand what had happened and as a result there is a way forward and for that I say thank you to Pope Benedict.
The Popes had strong words of condemnation for his ‘ priests and religious’ who have abused children. He called on them to ‘take responsibility for their sins’ and to ‘submit to give an account of their actions’ and to submit to ‘the demands of justice’. Can we now interpret that to mean that the Pope will not let Cannon law stand in the way of bishops reporting offenders still alive today and obliging them to submit themselves to the law of the land. They have committed criminal acts that should be subject to the due process of his law.
Another hopeful sign of the Popes letter is his address to his Bishops who he accused very forthrightly of being guilty of ‘serious mistakes in responding to allegations of sexual abuse and it had …’undermined their credibility and effectiveness’. Good and decent though some of our existing Bishops are they need to go. We must have a fresh start and their prolonged stay is simply putting off the inevitable. The Pope has I feel given them a way of going with their dignity and their record of service to the Catholic church still intact. Hang on now and they will be forced to go in a matter of months in disgrace.
The Pope’s recommendation that his priests offer up ‘fasting, prayer and reading of scripture’ should be extended to making themselves available to talk and listen to Survivors accounts of their suffering.
They need to know and understand more from the perspective of Survivors what happened. Along with their reading of the Scriptures, I recommend they talk to ordinary survivors in their communities , listen to them with humility and compassion . They should also read reliable and recognised accounts of Survivors as portrayed in Mary Raftery Documentary, States of Fear and in the harrowing account written in the God Squad by Paddy Doyle. With this new knowledge and understanding we can begin to start the essential process of reconciliation and forgiveness.
Sincerely
Cllr Sally Mulready
Chair of Irish Women Survivors Support Network
Published in The Irish Post Newspaper.
I only saw the trailer for, “The Magdaline Sisters,” and that alone turned my stomache. I have since then gotten an education on-line about these places. I highly admire and respect those women who survived those hell holes and with help have been able to move on. These are the true Christians because although they have the public on their side and could look up formet captors still living to settle the score they haven’t. Instead they showed pity on them as I show my own pity because now they face a fate worse than death-to live in shame the rest of their lives.
I don’t mean this as a slight to the beautiful country of Ireland, but I would be uncomfortable visiting knowing the Magdeline laundries, and other forms of abuse by people of the church and others connected were allowed to exist. If I were a father in Ireland and my son or daughter expressed having a religious vocation I would either discourage them, or pay to have them pursue a vocation outside the country. I would not want to attend Catholic Church in Ireland at this time although I acknowledge there are many priests and religious there who are good, upright people, many who lived during the time of those laundries, but apalled as they were could do nothing about it, or were punished if they did.
To those women who have not yet come forward I urge you to do so because you are not alone anymore and must not take what happened to your grave. To you nuns who ran those places, police, or anyone else who helped them you brought this shame on yourselves and the blood of the women who died in those places are on your hands. If you have any sense of shame come forward, attend survivors meeting and make your apologies personaly. I feel pity for you for the shame you brought on your orders that future generations will have to bear.
Crimes against Children are the most Damaging and this is why we have set up http://shameofireland.co.uk/ to seek Justice for the crimes of the Industrial School System The Shame Of Ireland is for Survivors, Family, and Friends of those Survivors. ALL are welcome!
If you have a mind to vote on petitions that affect the lives of Survivors there are 2 at the moment
http://www.petitions.ie/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=238&Itemid=9&latestnews=latest
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/267/justice-for-irish-survivors-of-child-abuse/
If you know of any others that I should be promoting or want more information about the Shame Of Ireland email me @ rob.northall@ntlworld.com
Cardinal Brady Must Resign for his part in the protection Fr Brendan Smyth, and allowing him to continue! You can sign the petition at
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/cardinal-sean-brady-must-resign/
I have read ‘CHRISTY’S’ comments with regard to Sally Mulready’s letter on your web. Absolutely, you are right to disagree with her views on the way forward if you wish.
I believe reading Sally’s letter-it was sincere, compassionate and she actually understood what Survivors in the Uk and all over the world were going through on that day.
You may wish to make snide remarks and it is tragic that Survivors attack each other but I actually know and have seen at first hand what Sally Mulready has achieved and the difference she has made to the lives of so many women and survivors in the UK.
My very close friend is a Survivor, and I came to the Women’s Group with her 5 years ago to support her. She was broken women and had given up on life, on her family and just could not move beyond childhood and adolescent experiences in these places.
I saw for myself that Sally Mulready showed kindness, compassion, and gave her strength and a willingness to take those practical steps to move on. Today, 5 years later, she practically runs into those meetings-not enough of them-and like many there she inspires others with her confidence and determination. Survivors should not be put down and especially not by other survivors thus focussing on the wrong target to hit.
So ‘Christy’ understand as I do that you and thousands were abused,used and lives ruined. Please don’t accuse and attack one of the very few who has made a difference.
Turn your wrath on those who deserve it- those priests, nuns and brothers who continue to lie and deny the truth.
Dear Paddy
I would like to respond to Christy’s letter regarding Sally Mulready I cannot believe its contents and the nasty under tones it could have only be written by a fellow Irish person, Sally Mulready has done more then any one I know in seeking justice and has worked so hard she is the best person here in the UK SHE HAS NO Political gain what so ever as for you Christy you should know your facts and give her the respect she deserves I commend David for your kind words about Sally I was appalled when I read Christy’s letter was very hurtful and in my opinion Sally is our very best hope here in the UK and I for one have the greatest admiration for Sally so there Gabrielle North
I would like to respond to Christy’s absurd and malicious criticism of Sally Mulready’s brilliantly written letter. It is to each individual as to whether they seek reconciliation and forgiveness. And before I receive a verbal bashing, I would like you to know that I was a disabled child in one of the ‘Child Brothels’ as you like to call them. In fact I was almost eighteen years in one which was run by nuns.
Your perception of leaders of survivors groups is far from the reality of what genuine leaders (such as Sally) do for survivors who can not articulate how they feel, where to get advice from and who to turn to whilst engulfed in the pain they suffered in the depraved institutions of Ireland including the Magdeline Laundries.
You obviously have no faith in survivors groups (maybe that comes from a bad experience – I don’t know) but many, many survivors are very happy to have the support of survivors groups and I certainly would endorse that Sally Mulready is one of the better leaders of any group.
As to the question of money or grants, that query could be tabled to any survivors groups or indeed to any individual survivor. I can appreciate from your comments regard Sally’s letter that you suffered horrendously in the ‘Child Brothels’ (although I don’t know you personally & maybe I am assuming) but to undertake an offensive onslaught at another survivor is hardly a sign of solidarity among survivors.
To SALLY MULREADY
‘WITH THIS NEW KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING WE CAN BEGIN TO START THE ESSENTIAL PROCESS
OF RECONCILIATION AND FORGIVENESS’ never.
SALLY I TAKE IT YOU WERE NOT IN ANY OF THE CHILD BROTHELS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH OF IRELAND, YOU ARE JUST ANOTHER GROUP SO CALLED LEADER IN IT FOR THE MONEY, HOW MUCH IS YOUR GRANT,who elected you?
Christy
Statute of limitation has no place in society as a crime is a crime and time does not unmake any crime, because time does not actually exist in the first place- ohhhh that is right, that was another idea of the Romans to create clock time instead of going along with nature like we used to do. All deliberate acts to put humans out of synch with nature.
For me no matter how many words the pope says or how many prayers he says- it is all an act, and i will not be falling for the con this time around.
The church is self destructing.
“I know it has not taken away the pain and though the Pope endeavoured(sic) in that very sincere and Pontifical Way to express sorrow , remorse and even pity to the Survivors , in the end the protection and the renewal of the Catholic Church and the failure to acknowledge that crimes against children were being covered up, were the paramount messages I discerned from his letter. I am very disappointed and hurt by the inadequacies of the Pontiffs letter. The justice survivors seek cannot be obtained merely through prayer and other ecclesiastical reflections on a so called Higher Authority. Cannon law has shown itself to be corruptible and not always on the side of truth . It will not in itself bring justice.”
I can’t speak for anyone else, but I surely don’t want anyone pitying, or feeling sorry for me, especially the pope and others of his ilk, who helped make it all possible in the first place by setting in place the rules for the very cover up’s that took place, and will, no doubt, continue to take place all over the world.
Understanding and a helping hand up for those that need it would have been appreciated, but you cannot expect anything like that from the rcc in print.
I feel it is up to every survivor to help themselves as much as they can by reporting illegal acts by rcc clergy to the police and insisting something be done. Never take no for an answer. Long ago, the U.S.A. set a statute of limitations on physical abuse of three years, and seven on sexual abuse. Don’t allow that to happen in Ireland, England, and Scotland. That type of abuse should never have a statute of limitations placed on it. It’s a life sentence for the survivor, make it a life sentence (literally) for the abusers.