A terrible scandal still shakes the Catholic orphanage in the town of Tuam, County Galway. Recent investigations (carried out in 2016) have revealed the existence of the remains of 800 children, buried beneath the building, who died as a result of abuse and neglect between 1925 and 1961. This macabre discovery is a major embarrassment for the Catholic Church in Ireland, which has already been plagued by scandals in recent years.
Between 1925 and 1961, several thousand children born out of wedlock or from poverty were placed in the Tuam orphanage without trial, and without the systematic consent of their mothers.
This orphanage, run by nuns, was the place where mothers gave birth and were then forced to abandon their babies, before leaving, forced to work in laundries, to pay the rents of their “bastards”.
A real human tragedy, which has long been hushed up, where thousands of women were forced to abandon their children, without knowing the fate that awaited them.
However, a recent survey carried out between 2014 and 2016 has lifted the veil on what goes on behind the scenes at this orphanage. Excavations beneath the building revealed an underground structure containing countless human bones. The remains of more than 800 children and infants, all of whom died between 1925 and 1961 as a result of neglect and other forms of abuse, were soon discovered.
A commission of inquiry was set up, shaking up the whole of Ireland. The “survivors” of the orphanage began to speak out, testifying to the violence of the nuns, the filthy environment, the physical abuse, the deprivation of food and the punishments meted out during their time there. Many claim to have seen children their own age suddenly disappear without explanation…
The then Prime Minister, Enda Kenny, declared that “this abomination” required further investigation.
Many Irish people are now speaking out against the Catholic Church in Ireland, and looking for answers. Some start researching missing relatives who attended the orphanage, while others demand reparation and apologies…
It’s a tense situation that’s undermining the position and image of the Catholic Church in Ireland, which is already in a bad way thanks to a number of scandals in recent years.
