An Irish thalidomide survivor has said she is now hopeful the State will set up a redress scheme having “constantly fought” against one for many years.
Thalidomide is a drug that was widely prescribed to pregnant women suffering from morning sickness in the 1960s.
Manufacturers insisted it was safe and it was sold to women over the counter without a prescription.
One woman who took it was Finola Cassidy’s mother.
Now a spokesperson for the Irish Thalidomide Association, she describes the drug as taking a “wrecking ball to the embryo”.
“Depending on which day a mother took it, when something was being developed - like the arms or the ears or the internal organs - specifically they were damaged,” Ms Cassidy told Newstalk Breakfast.
“So many children were miscarried, died at birth and then we’ve lost many people since.
“The survivors, we’ve now reached over 60 years of age and we were born with catastrophic disabilities - [no] arms, no legs, missing ears.
“It is the overuse and the misuse of those limbs over 60 years that has brought untold damage and pain and difficulty to use.”
Taoiseach & Gov need to act now following last night’s powerful documentary detailing the terrible injustice done to #Thalidomide survivors.
Apology now. https://t.co/U1urIUQ9Uv
— Ivana Bacik (@ivanabacik) August 29, 2024
Yesterday, Ireland’s Thalidomide Scandal was broadcast on Virgin Media, revealing the impact of the drug on the lives of the survivors and their decades’ long fight for justice.
It is a scandal that might have impacted far fewer people had the Government banned the drug from being sold in Ireland.
“The Government knew and had been notified of the dangers of the drug, [they] chose not to withdraw it - deliberately chose not to withdraw it,” Ms Cassidy said.
“Dr John O’Connell, a very famous TD back in the 60s and 70s who helped our parents, he was able to walk into a rural pharmacy in Ireland and buy it over the counter, three years after it should have been withdrawn.
“It’s the neglect on the part of the State that has brought us to the campaign that we’ve been running for 15 years.”
Thank you one and all. Our phones are hopping. Nothing left unsaid. We are running on empty so we need your continued support to bring closure. Nite for now x
Sincere thanks to all involved @VirginMediaNews— Irish Thalidomide Association (@ThalidomideIre) August 28, 2024
In recent months, survivors have been in contact with the three coalition party leaders and Ms Cassidy said she is hopeful that the Government will “take ownership” of the legacy of thalidomide.
“In the last couple of months, we started to engage," she said.
"Simon Harris, Micheál Martin and Minister Roderic O’Gorman had written to us.
“We all had a meeting back in July; at first the meeting was going to be very challenging because they excluded a lot of our members who are what we call the ‘unacknowledged’, who are still not accepted by the State even though they have a medical diagnosis of thalidomide.
“We did all get into the room and it was a very frank, very safe space for our members to tell them categorically what their lives were like.”
Compensation
Ms Cassidy added that "it's time" survivors are given a redress scheme, with some have started legal action against the State over a decade ago.
“It’s the depth of what they’ve thrown at us over the last 15 years,” she said.
“How they’ve constantly fought us is beginning to take an awful toll.
“So, this is an opportunity for them to sit down and resolve one of the outstanding horrible legacies of Ireland in the 60s.”
According to the Thalidomide Trust, over 10,000 babies across the world were affected by the drug.
Around 3,000 survive today, of whom several dozen live in Ireland.
Main image: Finola Cassidy. Image: Supplied.
