CALL FOR INDEPENDENT INQUIRY INTO BORTHERS OF CHARITY GALWAY

Date Published: 25-Jun-2008

There has been a call for an independent inquiry into allegations of sexual abuse at two Brothers of Charity centres in Galway.A report into the claims of sexual abuse was published last year and was reviewed at the Oireachtas Health Committee in the Dail yesterday.The report covers allegations of abuse at the Holy Family Special school in Renmore and Kilcornan centre in Clarinbridge between 1965 and 1998.The inquiry took 8 years to complete and yesterday Fine Gael's Alan Shatter asked HSE local health manager Ger Rainey what was the reason for the delays with the report.Meanwhile Margaret Kennedy a specialist in disability and abuse said she did not believe the inquiry was sufficiently rigorous.She said the report failed to call to account anyone responsible for wrongdoing and it did not track the alleged abusers as they moved from institution to institution.The HSE is to employ an expert to carry out an audit of policies and procedures to respond to allegations of sexual abuse in services for people with disabilities.I