Opinion

Analysis: Muckamore families deserve nothing less than complete transparency

Families arrive in Belfast for the inquiry into Muckamore Abbey Hospital. Picture by Hugh Russell
Families arrive in Belfast for the inquiry into Muckamore Abbey Hospital. Picture by Hugh Russell Families arrive in Belfast for the inquiry into Muckamore Abbey Hospital. Picture by Hugh Russell

ON a hot and overcast day, families of vulnerable patients who were allegedly abused at Muckamore Abbey Hospital gathered outside a building in Belfast city centre.

One by one they queued up for waiting photographers, holding up photos of their loved ones, ahead of the first public session of an inquiry into the scandal.

Some appeared overcome by the enormity of the day and were visibly emotional.

What the families want are answers - how their loved ones were abused and how the abuse could be allowed to happen.

The patients themselves - all vulnerable, many non-verbal - either could not speak up or were not "regarded as credible", the inquiry heard.

It is primarily thanks to the families that the UK's largest-ever probe into the alleged abuse of vulnerable adults was set up.

But for some parents and patients, the long-awaited inquiry has come too late, among them Margaret Lyons and her son Richard who died within a year of each other.

It is almost five years since campaigner Glynn Brown was informed that his son Aaron was assaulted by a member of staff in Muckamore.

A year later, a whistleblower contacted The Irish News about disturbing CCTV footage which allegedly showed patients being struck by staff and pulled to the floor by the hair.

In the intervening years, dozens of staff have been suspended and police have trawled through thousands of hours of footage.

The inquiry, which is running in parallel with the police probe, was first announced in 2020 after lobbying from parents and carers.

Although the inquiry formally began last year, yesterday was the first time it sat in public session.

The session marked the beginning of a long road, with hearings expected to last for many months.

In the inquiry's opening statements, chair Tom Kark and senior counsel Sean Doran repeatedly warned that the hearings would be emotional.

But they emphasised that it was the inquiry's job to get to the heart of the matter.

The families of vulnerable patients abused in a hospital which was supposed to provide compassionate care deserve nothing less.