The Irish Times – Saturday, April 23, 2011
PAMELA DUNCAN
THE UN Commission Against Torture has received a submission claiming Magdalene laundry survivors continue to suffer due to the Government’s failure to apologise, investigate and compensate them.
Survivor advocacy group Justice for Magdalenes has asked the UN committee to examine whether Ireland is meeting its human rights obligations in relation to women who spent time in these institutions.
The 47-page submission, which includes personal testimonies from Magdalene survivors, points towards Ireland’s legal duties under the convention against torture to investigate allegations of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and to ensure redress for the victims of such treatment.
Maeve O’Rourke, author of the submission and a Harvard Law School global human rights fellow, said international process “offers Ireland a chance to show the world that it is serious about putting right the mistakes of its past and ensuring a better and more equal future for all, including those who were so unjustly treated by the State in decades gone by”.
The submission claims Ireland has a legal duty under the convention to promptly and impartially investigate allegations of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and to ensure redress.
James Smith
Associate Professor
English Department & Irish Studies Program
Boston College
