An order of nuns in Dublin has criticised the RTÉ Radio One programme Liveline for broadcasting "the name of a recently deceased person and explicit personal details about her life".
They said yesterday that criticising sisters and broadcasting allegations about sisters that had not been proven at any forum was now the norm.
"We have only decided to speak on this issue as a woman who we know valued her privacy had her name and intimate details about her life broadcast to the nation on Tuesday."
The Sisters of Our Lady of Charity at High Park, Drumcondra, Dublin, also said they believed that her family were not informed of this prior to the broadcast.
They pointed out they never ran mother-and-baby homes nor an adoption agency.
The matter concerned a 51-year-old woman who died recently. She was believed to be the youngest surviving resident of a Magdalen laundry.
Liveline received calls from friends of the woman who spoke of her life, illness and death. She had been a child at an orphanage run by the Sisters at High Park and was in their care when she died. She was buried in the Magdalen plot at Glasnevin cemetery.
On Wednesday her daughter and the girl's foster father rang Liveline to say the first they had heard about the death was on the previous day's broadcast. They expressed annoyance at not being notified by the nuns.
The nuns said: "Her family, who were in ongoing contact with us, were informed of her passing and attended her funeral".
This is believed to refer to the woman's brother. They also tried to contact other members of the family and spent two days calling a number. Eventually they asked the Garda to visit the address.
"We did not know that the person had changed address until yesterday . "
They said that, despite suffering from a terminal illness, the woman died suddenly at the Mater Hospital in July. She had been visited by a sister the evening before.
A special funeral service was arranged and was attended by family and friends. A booklet was prepared with her name on it.
"Her name will be put on the headstone by the undertaker, and the grave will be maintained by the Sisters of Our Lady of Charity. There is no 'reference to penitents or Magdalens on the headstone', they said, as was claimed on the programme.
Last night RTÉ said the Liveline team's motivation was to deal with the matter in a way that was compassionate and fair to all involved.
On Wednesday direct contact was made with a sister, who was invited on the programme. She did not accept. Liveline tried to contact the woman's family, unsuccessfully.
