Opinion

Claire Simpson: Political leaders must do what is right for abuse victims

Members of the group Survivors and Victims of Institutional Abuse (Savia) protest outside Stormont Parliament buildings to highlight how abuse victims have been denied compensation due to the power-sharing deadlock PICTURE: Siobhan Fenton/PA
Members of the group Survivors and Victims of Institutional Abuse (Savia) protest outside Stormont Parliament buildings to highlight how abuse victims have been denied compensation due to the power-sharing deadlock PICTURE: Siobhan Fenton/PA Members of the group Survivors and Victims of Institutional Abuse (Savia) protest outside Stormont Parliament buildings to highlight how abuse victims have been denied compensation due to the power-sharing deadlock PICTURE: Siobhan Fenton/PA

IN a speech in Washington last week, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar described the continuing impasse at Stormont as “corrosive”.

“It means that there is no effective political engagement on issues of relevance to the lives of the people of Northern Ireland, economically and socially,” he told an audience at the Brookings Institution ahead of the St Patrick’s Day celebrations.

The Fine Gael leader may have undermined his credentials as a statesman by admitting a few days later that he had intervened on behalf of US President Donald Trump over a proposed wind farm near the businessman’s golf course in Co Clare, but his message about Stormont still stands. Without a government, our politics is corroding.

There are few “issues of relevance” so emotive as historic child abuse. Continuing revelations about paedophile priest Fr Malachy Finegan show that many more victims than we could ever have imagined still carry the scars of abuse. A few have been brave enough to come forward and share their stories but other, equally brave, victims have chosen to stay silent.

It is now well over a year since Sir Anthony Hart’s report into abuse at children’s homes run by the church, state or Barnardo's laid bare the suffering of so many people who had never before been given a voice. And yet the political stalemate has meant that none of his recommendations, including a public apology and compensation for survivors, have been progressed.

The Fr Finegan case has again prompted calls for a full public inquiry into clerical sex abuse in the north. What did the church, state and police know about abuse cases and how did they act? Did the church protect people suspected of abuse and did the state or police fail to properly investigate allegations? The answers are unlikely to be of much comfort to victims but they would be better than no answers at all.

Those who suffered at the hands of adult predators have seen many of those abusers die without being called to account for their crimes. Victims themselves are growing older and with each passing month people are dying without ever receiving the redress they deserve.

Secretary of State Karen Bradley, who most of us would still be hard-pressed to identify in a line-up of two, has insisted the British government cannot step in to either establish an inquiry or provide redress - despite its intervention over Stormont’s budget.

Mrs Bradley said pay-outs to victims would be “unconstitutional” and would undermine the Good Friday Agreement. Since her own government seems intent on pursuing a Brexit strategy which could destroy the peace accord, her words ring rather hollow.

It is understandable that the Tory government has not prioritised victims. Tackling the legacy of abuse in the north is hardly a vote-winner in Hampshire. But the influence of the DUP at Westminster could make abuse victims a priority. Last week, after a quiet word from DUP deputy leader Nigel Dodds, the government’s plans to scrap a system of childcare vouchers was delayed by six months. Getting any financial concession from the Tories is an achievement in itself. Surely, given that compensation for survivors is one issue on which all the parties agree, the DUP could use its clout to push for a deal?

Unlike the contested legacy of the Troubles, with huge differences of opinion over who is or is not a victim, clerical and institutional abuse is clear-cut. Those who were abused are the victims - the perpetrators were not. Public opinion may not have always been on the side of survivors but the Fr Finegan case has displayed a complete sea-change in attitudes. Twenty, even ten years ago it would have been unthinkable for parents to object to a bishop officiating at their children’s Confirmation. But that is what happened following revelations that former Bishop of Dromore Dr John McAreavey was aware of allegations against Fr Finegan but still celebrated the paedophile cleric’s funeral Mass.

Since Stormont collapsed, and even before it, divisions between the parties have again shown the relative pettiness of our politics. Yet this is one issue where the parties can regain some of their credibility. Twenty years ago, politicians with courage and vision signed the Good Friday Agreement. Agreeing to help some of the most vulnerable people in our society requires neither vision nor courage, just an understanding of what is right.

Providing redress to victims will not undermine the devolved institutions, it will strengthen the reputation of our politicians in the eyes of the public. As Easter approaches, bringing its message of great sacrifice and hope, it is time for our leaders to do the right thing.