NUNS FAKED BIRTH RECORDS
Wrong parents registered for 126 people Minister Zappone slams ‘deliberate failure’
DOZENS of people may not know they are adopted because Sisters of Charity nuns illegally meddled with birth certificates.
A probe led by child welfare agency Tusla uncovered 126 cases of falsely registered births by St Patrick’s Guild.
Children’s Minister Katherine Zappone said yesterday the “deliberate failure” to keep proper records of births has “very personal and profound implications” for anyone involved.
CRIMES may have been committed when Sisters of Mercy nuns changed adopted babies’ birth certificates, it was revealed yesterday.
Children’s Minister Katherine Zappone said 126 youngsters were registered with their adopters wrongly identified as their real parents – and 79 have never been told.
That means dozens of people could be walking around believing their adoptive parents are their biological mum and dad.
Ms Zappone said it was “an illegal bypassing of the law” and a “deliberate failure” to keep proper records at the adoption agency.
She added: “This is a very serious and sensitive issue.
“People have the right to know of their true origins and, where we have clear evidence, I believe we have an obligation to tell the people affected.
“Some may know already, but for others it will be entirely new and very difficult information indeed.”
The scandal affects anyone who was placed by St Patrick’s Guild in Dublin between 1946 and 1969. It was dissolved in 2014 and its records passed to child welfare agency Tusla.
Social workers noticed a strange stamp on some adoption papers stating “adopted at birth”. When these were crosschecked with the Adoption Authority of Ireland and the General Register Office it was discovered the wrong parents’ names were on the birth certificates. A Tusla spokesman said “crimes may have been committed”.
The 126 adopted people identified in the investigation will now be contacted. But there are fears the scandal could be even worse as the current probe only looked at the 13,500 adoptions of St Patrick’s.
Tusla received 150,000 adoption records from other agencies and an independent investigation and sampling exercise has now been launched to find out if any more have been falsified.
Labour’s Joan Burton, who was adopted as a child, said the latest scandal highlights the need for stalled adoption tracing legislation to be fast-tracked.
She added: “I am deeply concerned that this information is only coming to light now, and that dozens of people are not aware of the true circumstances of their birth.
“This story confirms that Ireland needs as a matter of urgency the implementation of adoption tracing legislation, so adult adoptees in Ireland can access their own records in relation to their birth families.”
A spokesman for Tusla said: “This is an extremely sensitive issue and one which we acknowledge may cause upset and anxiety for those affected, as well as adopted people, adoptive parents and birth parents across the country.
“Tusla will ensure that those affected will be treated with dignity, respect, sensitivity and a true sense of compassion.”
The Coalition of Mother And Baby Home Survivors said last night: “This is just the tip of a very large iceberg of fraud, forgery, baby trafficking, child abduction and criminal activity by rogue Irish adoption agencies who have destroyed tens of thousands of innocent lives.
“The Government has known all about this for more than 20 years when Alan Shatter and Francis Fitzgerald made detailed speeches about illegal practices in adoption agencies and named St Patrick’s Guild.
“Perhaps the most vital issue here is that illegally adopted people have spent generations going to their doctors and hospitals and unknowingly giving false and potentially lethal family medical histories that do not relate to them.” A helpline has been set up for anyone who has concerns about their adoption. The freecall number is 1800 805 665 and is open from 10am to 4pm Monday to Friday.