Deputies, Colleagues
We are here today to speak about the identification, by Tusla, that the
births of 126 individuals from St Patrick’s Guild were registered
illegally.
A cruel and inhuman past rises up again—with a vengeance—in Ireland.
It is about the shaming of women, it is about the shaming of mothers, it is
about how this shaming has been inherited by their children.
I am truly sorry that this has happened.
It is also about how lies, secrets and silences –allowed and accepted by
Irish society and Irish churches in the past—continue to block access to
information to one’s identity and to restorative justice in the present.
I hope and I believe that we can change this. We have a moral imperative
to do so.
Where does that moral imperative come from?
It comes from the voices of the people who were and continue to be impacted
by the illegal practices surrounding birth registration and adoption
practices in the not so distant past.
I had the opportunity, along with my departmental officials and advisors,
to meet several of them, and advocates, at the beginning of this week.
We listened to their stories and we also listened to their analysis, and
their recommendations of the change required.
One of the women, a survivor of Bethany, spoke about her arduous and
painful search for her birth mother, and how her desire for information was
blocked at every turn.
One day she finally found her, buried in a pauper’s grave.
With great dignity and courage, she purchased the grave, as an act to claim
identity without shame, and to do the right thing where others had failed.
Her story, the other stories of the people in the 126 cases identified, and
the countless others, whose lives and rights have been violated because of
past practices, demand that we act –in multiple ways—to enable the right to
information and the knowledge of one’s identity for those who do not have
it.
Their stories, I believe, also demand that the right things are done about
their records, and that they are supported appropriately in the process to
recover who they are and relationships lost.
We also need, I think, ways to enable the truth-telling, and the
remembering, so that we can make a transition towards a new way of valuing
women, mothers and children.
ST PATRICK'S GUILD
Following my announcement of the 29th May I want to clearly outline the
evidence and to share with Deputies what we know to date.
I will then outline the processes Tusla has in place and my plans to
establish whether the practice is more widespread, either in the remaining
Patrick’s Guild files or in files of other adoption societies.
Finally, I will address the Information and Tracing Bill and the Mother and
Baby Homes Commission of Investigation.
EVIDENCE OF ILLEGAL REGISTRATIONS
The issue that has arisen in relation to certain St Patrick’s Guild files
is evidence of illegal birth registrations.
In effect babies were given to a couple and registered as the child of that
couple and not of the baby’s birth parents.
There is no adoption order.
While there have been suspicions about illegal registrations for many
years, it has been extremely difficult to uncover clear evidence because of
the deliberate failure by those involved to keep records.
On 25th May 2016 the records of the Guild (SPG) transferred to Tusla- the
Child and Family Agency.
In the course of scanning the records the issue of illegal birth
registrations was identified.
Tusla informed An Garda Siochana, the Mother and Baby Home Commission of
Investigation and my Department.
Tusla validated the information against Adoption Authority and GRO records,
which resulted in the identification of the 126 cases.
I moved immediately to inform the Cabinet, and to announce, on 29th May
last, that a process had been put in place to deal with these cases, led by
experienced social workers.
An illegal birth registration is potentially life changing so the State has
a responsibility to reach a high level of certainty before it contacts the
individuals concerned.
This threshold has now been reached in the case of these 126 files.
The information I put into the public domain came to light because the
index cards contained the words ‘adopted from birth’.
This phrase raised suspicions, and the cases involved were analysed further
in conjunction with the Adoption Authority and the GRO, and it has been
concluded that these were illegal registrations.
INDIVIDUALS CONCERNED IN THE 126 CASES
Of these 126 cases, 79 have never had contact with St Patrick’s Guild or
with Tusla, and in the remaining cases, there has been some contact, by the
individual or a relative.
In addition to these 126 cases, Tusla continues to examine a further 16
cases where at this point in time, there is not enough evidence to
determine whether an illegal registration took place or not.
While I am making every effort to ensure numbers are accurate, I must
caution the House that they will change as more records are examined.
In particular, the Adoption Authority is aware of a number of cases,
approximately 140, where existing suspicions in relation to illegal
registration must now be revisited, and a validation exercise is underway.
We must reflect on the impact our actions will have on the people involved.
In addition to possible psychological issues of identity there are
potentially serious issues relating to the correction of birth records and
inheritance.
We may well be called upon to address further issues, as they emerge.
RESPONSE AND SUPPORTS
Neither Tusla nor the Adoption Authority are out to destroy, upset or split
families. They are there to provide information and support.
The 126 cases have already been allocated to experienced information and
tracing social workers. They will work in a measured and sensitive way and
at the pace of the individual concerned.
The process will also be respectful if those who have been illegally
registered and choose not to engage.
It is also the case that there are people we will never be able to contact,
as files may have been deliberately designed to conceal identities or
people could be deceased.
CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION
Once Tusla identified the issue arising from the index cards, they informed
the Mother and Baby Homes Commission and An Garda Siochana.
The records were scanned and shared with the Commission and the Gardaí
sought, and have been given, a sample 10 files.
Let me be absolutely clear - a false registration is an offence.
The Gardaí must review the evidence and make a judgment, with the DPP, on
how to proceed.
I have no role in these investigations, nor should I.
INDEPENDENT REVIEW OF ADOPTION SOCIETY RECORDS
We need to know if there is further evidence of illegal registrations.
I have appointed an Independent Reviewer to oversee a further analysis of
relevant records held by Tusla and the Adoption Authority.
Marion Reynolds is a former Deputy Director of Social Services in Northern
Ireland.
She has been asked to report to me within four months of the work
commencing.
There are some 150,000 records at issue, of which 100,000 are currently in
the custody of Tusla and the AAI and accessible to the Reviewer.
We need a well-planned analysis first of the Tusla and AAI records to see
if a major trawl is likely to give us hard evidence of illegal
registrations.
We must first judge the likely incidence of cases that can actually be
identified, through the analysis, and the scale of them.
Then I will be in a position to judge the next steps.
Some are calling for a full audit of all the files.
While I appreciate the motivation, our limited resources must be used as
effectively as possible.
MOTHER AND BABY HOMES COMMISSION OF INVESTIGATION
The Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation is examining adoption
practices in the cases of mothers and children who were resident in the
specified institutions within its terms of reference.
It is reasonable to anticipate that this examination will provide an
insight into any potential irregularities involved.
The Commission has committed to investigating any such cases it comes
across.
ADOPTION (INFORMATION AND TRACING) BILL 2016
During the course of this week I met people directly affected by illegal
registrations, advocacy groups and members of both the Dáil and Seanad.
Many of you – were part of a very useful and productive meeting yesterday
– which also included colleagues from the Seanad.
The focus has been on progressing the Adoption (Information and Tracing)
Bill.
Deputies will be aware that the Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill
2016 has passed Second Stage in the Seanad.
The bill seeks to respect the rights to identity and privacy. This is
proving challenging as they sometime conflict with one another.
The Bill also creates offences for destroying, mutilating, concealing or
falsifying records.
Everyone I met this week – including members of this house – all agreed on
one thing - this Bill is urgently needed.
The 29th of May changed everything – it has informed the wider public, the
body politics and the media of the need to act.
My intention is that the Bill will be enacted by the end of the year.
CONCLUSION
At the centre of all of this are people who were lied to and denied
information about their true identity.
They need answers, explanations and the choice or opportunity to meet their
birth parents.
It is a matter of profound regret to me that safeguards put in place by the
State were circumvented.
My responsibility now is to oversee a sensitive process which seeks to
finally give them the information withheld from them all these years.
Thank you for your attention, and I very much look forward to hearing your
contributions to the debate.