I cried for years, I fought to keep her... I want to tell my story to the judge
Woman battles for formal hearings after being ‘gagged’
THE probe into the Tuam babies scandal has been slammed by survivors who claim they are being gagged by the State.
The Commission of Inquiry was set up at a cost of €23million after the bodies of 798 babies were found in septic tanks behind the Galway home run by Bons Secours nuns.
The three-year investigation, chaired by Judge Yvonne Murphy, was tasked with hearing evidence from thousands of survivors about their experiences at 14 homes.
But many women have only been given the option of an informal confidential hearing rather than formal sworn testimony.
Mother and Baby Home survivors’ group Irish First Mothers are now considering a legal action in the High Court to seek a judicial review of the commission’s work.
Its founder Kathy Mcmahon, who asked if the confidential committee was acting as a “vetting process” on who gets to give formal testimony,
signed an affidavit just days before she died in May.
She outlined how she had asked to give sworn evidence about her experiences at two Mother and Baby Homes but was still awaiting a response when she passed away.
Rosemarie Adie, whose daughter was torn from her arms shortly after she gave birth at the age of 18, is among seven women who have signed affidavits seen by this newspaper.
She told the Irish Sunday Mirror: “I went to see the commission on June 16, I told my story to them and it was written down and recorded.
“I had thought I’d be going in front of the judge and I asked if I could do that. They said Judge Murphy would look at the notes and decide whether to see me or not.
“I got a letter back saying the judge had seen my notes and didn’t see the need to meet me. I have a feeling that my letter hasn’t been seen by her at all.”
Rosemarie got pregnant at 17 and spent time at Ard Mhuire Mother and Baby Home in Dunboyne, Co Meath. She said: “I was so scared I wet the bed every night for a week. I went into labour in the middle of the night and I was taken into the hospital by the side door and tended to by student nurses.
“My baby was born, she was a wee girl, 8lb 6oz. I remember her all wrapped up. When the nurse put her into my arms I knew I was in big trouble. I was in love. I never heard of the mother and baby bond before, nobody told me about that.”
Rosemarie left hospital two days later and was told she would be reunited with her child at Ard Mhuire – but her baby girl was whisked away and adopted overnight.
She sobbed: “I had to walk away and leave her. I didn’t know I was leaving without her. I just wanted her to be cuddled and not left on her own.
“When I got back to Dunboyne all I could hear was babies crying, it was horrendous.” Rosemarie was rushed back to hospital 24 hours later after suffering a serious bleed. She said: “I suffered a massive haemorrhage where they left part of the afterbirth in. I thought I was going to die.”
Rosemarie spent years trying to find her baby but her efforts were frustrated at every turn. She has since met her daughter, now in her 30s, but years apart put a strain on the relationship and they are no longer in contact.
She said: “I cried for years. I fought to keep her. I was devastated, heartbroken. I want to tell my story to the
I didn’t know I was leaving without her. I wanted her to be cuddled not left on her own ROSEMARIE ADIE ON HER NEWBORN DAUGHTER
judge. I want to tell them, ‘Don’t take my infant child from me and hand me back an adult and expect me not to grieve her’. I’ll always grieve her.
“That bond is broken and can never be repaired. I never had other children. I couldn’t. I didn’t want her to think I went out to have other kids willy nilly without getting her back.”
Rosemarie wants Children’s Minister Katherine Zappone and the Commission of Inquiry to hear her concerns and those of others before it’s too late. She said: “The oldest in our group is 77 and she has a lot of health issues.” The commission was due to deliver its findings in February but this has been extended by a year.
Its website makes no mention of the investigation committee – only the confidential committee which carries less weight. Irish First Mothers said application forms sent to its members have no option for them to choose the formal investigation committee.
Spokesperson Fintan Dunne added: “The public thinks a Commission of Investigation has been empowered to take sworn testimony from mothers who were sequestered in Mother and Baby Homes.
“In theory that’s true. In practice women who came forward were instead unknowingly steered to speak with an unsworn social history project that is merely an adjunct to the primary investigation. Members of First Mothers have repeatedly sought to give sworn testimony, but their appeals have been ignored or denied.
“This is a gross systemic failure of the commission and a betrayal of trust. First Mothers is considering with legal advisers whether this is also a failure to fulfil the legal mandate given by the Dail.”
The Irish Sunday Mirror contacted the commission but there was no reply at time of going to press.
Appeals have been ignored or denied. This is a gross systemic failure of the commission FINTAN DUNNE IRISH FIRST MOTHERS SPOKESPERSON
THE Tuam Babies scandal made global headlines and turned the world spotlight on the dark history of Ireland’s Mother and Baby Homes.
Setting up a Commission of Inquiry was small comfort to devastated survivors and their families – but at least it was something.
Imagine their disappointment to find the three-and-a-half-year probe appears to do little more than pay lip service to their suffering.
The State can rightly be accused of adding insult to injury by refusing to allow these brave women to give sworn testimony before a judge.
It’s time to show survivors respect, give them the voice they deserve, and listen to them.