Religious orders who declined to contribute to the Mother and Baby Institutions Payment Scheme have been condemned as “absolutely reprehensible”. 

Eight religious orders were involved in the negotiations; however, only three offered to contribute. 

The Sisters of Bon Secours have offered €12.97 million and the Sisters of St John of God offered "a conditional donation" of €75,000 as a charitable donation. 

Negotiator Sheila Nunan has also recommended "active consideration" of the offer of building from the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul. 

On Newstalk Breakfast, Special Advocate for Survivors of Institutional Abuse Patricia Carey said the orders have let people down once again. 

“I think it’s absolutely reprehensible that in some instances they wouldn’t even engage with the Government appointed negotiator Sheila Noonan,” she said. 

“I think it’s an indictment of their moral and ethical duties.

“I’m actually reading from one of the pieces of correspondence, they say we have no liability, no moral, ethical or legal liability exists. 

“I just think that this is a further failure by religious orders and church bodies to stand up and be counted for the harm that they inflicted on many thousands of women and children.” 

'Just retraumatised'

Ms Carey said that the behaviour of the orders had upset some survivors all over again.

“You always have hope in these situations,” she said. 

“Given that these are so-called religious organisations and purport to have a relationship with a higher being, you would have thought that they would have reflected on that and reflected on the harm they inflicted.

“But, to be quite honest, I’m not surprised; I’m disappointed and I’ve spoken to many people yesterday who are angry, who are further distressed, who talked about the experiences they had at the hands of members of those religious organisations and church bodies. 

“They’re just retraumatised.” 

An activist holding children's socks during a virtual protest in front of the Irish Mother and Baby Home Commission's Office in Dublin. Picture by: Artur Widak/NurPhoto.

Ms Carey added that the €75,000 offer from the Sisters of St John of God was far too low. 

“They clearly haven’t reflected on the people who were incarcerated in these institutions,” she said. 

“I think it’s a derisory amount; €75,000 amounts to… five redress payments for those people under the current payment scheme. 

“We know that many thousands of people are currently excluded from it and, not only were they offering that derisory amount, they were putting conditions on it. 

“So, yet again the religious orders were gatekeeping and controlling what happened - which is what they did from 1922 to 1998 in the Mother and Baby and county home institutions.” 

Ms Carey said she hopes there will be “further legal interrogation of what can be done” from the Government.

Main image: Tributes left at the site of a mass grave for children who died in a mother and baby home. Picture by: Alamy.com