'Endemic' rape and abuse of Irish children in Catholic care, inquiry finds

Rape and sexual molestation were "endemic" in Irish Catholic church-run industrial schools and orphanages, a report revealed today.
The nine-year investigation found that Catholic priests and nuns for decades terrorised thousands of boys and girls in the Irish Republic, while government inspectors failed to stop the chronic beatings, rape and humiliation.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/may/20/irish-catholic-schools-child-abuse-claims