Any public inquiry into the discovery of the skeletal remains of children in Tuam should be held in Tuam, according to Labour senator Lorraine Higgins.
Senator Higgins said it is imperative that such an inquiry be held in Tuam given the ample local knowledge of people living there and for a sense of justice to be seen and done locally.
“For too long, we have been the talk of the globe when it comes to abuse of people’s human rights,” she said. “Mass graves are something you associate with war zones and not places like Tuam, and this latest news shows the barbarity of some of the religious authorities operating in our towns.
“There were unreasonably high child mortality rates recorded right throughout Ireland and I very much doubt that the Tuam Bon Secours sisters were the only church organisation guilty of such secrets and concealment.”
Higgins said that it is important not to insult the memory of those who were abused by these organisations and that an inquiry is the best way to get to the bottom of church and educational abuse in Ireland.
“Now is the time for the church authorities to tell us where the rest of the bodies are. We need to know how many died in each of these homes throughout the country. We need details about each one of these children and where their resting places are. Now is not the time for spin but action, and uncovering the truth about our sorry history.”
