Irish inquiry to investigate sex abuse allegations at special schools

Report reveals 2,395 accusations made against people in religious orders which ran schools from the 1960s to 1990s

Hundreds of sexual abuse allegations at special schools run by religious orders will be investigated as part of a new Irish government inquiry.
The move follows the release of a report that looked into claims of sexual abuse in Irish education over a 30-year period from the 1960s to 1990s. It concluded that 2,395 accusations of abuse were made against 884 people, of whom less than half are still alive, in 42 religious orders that were involved in running schools.
The scoping inquiry’s report also exposed a disproportionate amount of allegations in special schools, where there were 590 accusations against 190 alleged abusers in 17 institutions.
Mary O’Toole SC, a lawyer and the report’s author, highlighted a “particularly high number of allegations in special schools” which typically provide for children with a special educational need or disability.
Norma Foley, the education minister, said it was the first time the “truly shocking” scale of the culture of abuse in religious-run boarding and day schools had been revealed.
The government now plans to appoint a full statutory investigation which is likely to be led by a sitting or retired judge.
The primary source for the data was the schools and religious orders, which said they were “deeply sorry”.
The true number of victims is likely to be even higher because people are reluctant to report sexual abuse.
Survivors reported being “molested, stripped naked, raped and drugged amid an atmosphere of terror and silence” and suffering mental health problems and addictions later in life.
The abuse “was often reported as having been accompanied by ferocious violence” and took place in classrooms, dormitories and sports facilities and at extracurricular activities.
Most of the abuse happened between the early 1960s and early 1990s, with the highest number of reported incidents in the early to mid-1970s.
Survivors had a “strong belief” that the abuse was so pervasive it must have been noticed by other staff and the leadership of the religious orders.
They told the scoping inquiry that “the power of the Catholic Church permeated their lives in every way” and they believed they could not tell anyone, including their parents.
The Association of Leaders of Missionaries and Religious in Ireland, which represents Catholic religious orders, apologised.
“We recognise that we can never know the depth of the pain and suffering survivors have endured and continue to endure,” it said, adding it would “respond accordingly” to the report.
Ms Foley said the report, commissioned last year after several survivors came forward with allegations of abuse, recommended the religious orders contribute to a compensation scheme.