Child abuse victims urge Varadkar to re-examine issue of damages

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has been challenged by survivors of sexual abuse to re-examine the Government’s interpretation of a European Court of Human Rights judgment that is it using to prevent damages being paid out to survivors where there was no prior complaint of abuse.

Members of the campaign group, Victims of Child Abuse in Day Schools (VOCADS) made the call in advance of a visit to Brussels to highlight Ireland’s response to the European Court of Human Rights judgment in the case of Louise O’Keeffe.

Ms O’Keeffe took Ireland to the ECHR over its failure to protect her from teacher Leo Hickey when she was a pupil at Dunderrow National School in Co Cork in the 1970s and won the case, but Ireland has interpreted the ruling as applying only in cases where there was prior complaint of abuse.

The Department of Education has cited its interpretation of the ECHR judgment that it was only liable for damages in cases where it was aware of a previous complaint and failed to act when advising other abuse victims to drop their claims for damages or risk ending up paying the legal costs.

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But VOCAD member John Boland, a victim of abuse in the 1960s, said the Taoiseach should re-examine his Government’s approach to dealing with survivors of child sex abuse in schools.

“I heard Mr Varadkar say when he was in California that the various actresses in Hollywood who had came out and told how they were abused were to be commended as it would encourage others to come forward and speak out about their experiences,” he said.

“It’s all very well to say that in California, but he should look at the behaviour of his own Government here because the way the Department of Education is interpreting the European Court of Human Rights judgment and the way they are treating survivors would not encourage anyone to come forward.”

Categories of victims

Louise O’Keeffe supports VOCAD and said Ireland had interpreted the ECHR ruling in her case in a manner which was creating different categories of victims – those who had been abused before any prior complaint against their abuser, and those abused after a prior complaint was made.

“In my case, because there was a prior complaint against my abuser, Leo Hickey, we were able to prove the State did nothing to protect me – but that should not mean that a prior complaint is a requirement for anybody else afterwards being offered a settlement by the State,” she said.

Ms O’Keeffe pointed out that Ireland was well aware that there was concern about child sexual abuse taking place in Irish schools ever since the Carrigan Report in the 1930s, but Ireland chose to do nothing about it, resulting in children continuing to be abused.

“We know from the Ryan Report that in the 1940s the State was aware of sexual abuse of children in school but did nothing about it until the 1990s – for me the fact there was a complaint in the 1940s means there was a prior complaint for every single child that was abused in school afterwards.”

Ireland South Sinn Féin MEP Liadh Ní Riada, who has organised for VOCAD to meet members of the European Parliament and various NGOs in Brussels next week, said she hopes the visit will highlight the issue internationally with a view to getting the Government to change its position on redress.