Make the Religious Pay: Get them out of Education and Health

By Kevin Wingfield

The arrogant dismissal by the 18 congregations of religious of
any revisiting of the deal to pay just a fraction of their liabilities for
sexual and physical abuse of children in their care must be the last straw.

Even some of the bishops, sensing the huge groundswell of anger over the
issue, felt forced to speak out in the previous few days.  The Catholic primate
Cardinal Seán Brady, Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin and Bishop of Killaloe
Willie Walsh said the 2002 deal limiting the religious congregations'
contribution to just €127m of the estimated €1.3bn liability with the taxpayer
picking up the tab for the rest, should be revisited and the 18 congregations
concerned should contribute more.

But the director general of the Conference of Religious of Ireland (CORI)
Marie Ann O’Connor point blank refused, flannelling instead that the 18 congregations would prefer to “deal directly and
to use all in their powers to channel whatever resources directly to the former
residents” rather than reopen the terms of the deal.

In a statement the Rape Crisis Network Ireland (RCNI) said,  “Sadly, yet
again we see these institutions employ the legal profession and hide behind so
called legal concerns in order to aggressively protect their self preservation
at any cost.” The RCNI said it was unacceptable for agencies involved in the
systematic abuse revealed in the Ryan commission report “to promote themselves
as best placed to meet the needs of those they have previously betrayed”.

Having protected men in their midst who raped and brutalised children, the
orders believe they can hide behind the government and the legal profession to
avoid paying realistic compensation to their victims.

It was recently revealed
that the religious congregations told the government in 2002 that they would
fight every case in the courts and estimated that by spinning out these cases,
and the rising legal bills of those claiming, they could reduce their liability
by to just €60 m.

The thuggish cover-up of decades of sexual and physical assaults by the
religious orders amounts to a criminal conspiracy of enormous proportions. Yet
they believe a few words of regret will wipe the slate clean. They also know
that Fianna Fail will protect them and their assets.

The craven excuse of Fianna Fail ministers that there are legal impediments is
a transparent falsehood. No such impediments were found when it came to
altering the contracts of public sector workers and imposing levies on their
pension contributions.

If there was a willingness from the government to ensure the religious took
responsibility for their actions it could be easily done. The statute of
limitations which prevents victims taking action for physical abuse and cruelty
in the past could be amended. A special tax or levy on the assets and property
of the religious congregations could be put in place. The massive Church assets
could be taken by the CAB.

If there was a willingness from our rulers to bring the Church to account,
it could be done. Instead the corrupt institution of Fianna Fail will do
nothing unless they are forced to. We need a massive movement of protest
demanding make the Church pay for its abuse.

From the foundation of the State, the Church was given a privileged position
in Irish life, dominating education and health. What should be a voluntary
association was elevated into an arm of the State. Fianna Fail and the ruling
class were happy to turn a blind eye to its abuses because it provided social
control particularly on the poor and working class people. The long overdue
erosion of its authority among the mass of people has allowed its terrible
abuse to slowly come to light.

Socialists have always argued for the separation of Church and State.
Religious observation of whatever sort should be a private matter, neither
promoted nor discriminated against by the state, its schools or its hospitals.
Social provision should be a public matter, democratically controlled, not the
private fiefdom of religious hierarchies.

Even now 80 percent of our schools are controlled by the Church. The
neurotic celibacy of the religious, and its power over the vulnerable, has
shown itself to be an affront to decency. It is time to take the Church out of
our hospitals, social services and schools.