I welcome the opportunity given for statements on mother and baby
homes in the Dáil tonight and I thank my colleagues on all sides of the
House for facilitating these statements.
I would like to begin by acknowledging the Irish women who were in Mother and Baby homes in this country in the last century and the children that they bore while in those institutions. Their personal stories are harrowing. The legacy of past cruelties continues to make itself felt; indeed, in recent days in the media, we have heard from women who spent time in mother and baby homes and from some of the children that came into the world in those institutions. Many of those affected want their stories told. Others may want privacy and we must be respectful of that choice.
I would like to begin by acknowledging the Irish women who were in Mother and Baby homes in this country in the last century and the children that they bore while in those institutions. Their personal stories are harrowing. The legacy of past cruelties continues to make itself felt; indeed, in recent days in the media, we have heard from women who spent time in mother and baby homes and from some of the children that came into the world in those institutions. Many of those affected want their stories told. Others may want privacy and we must be respectful of that choice.