It is difficult to discuss this legislation. It is a great change and it is extraordinary that we have had to introduce such a Bill. I commend Deputy O'Sullivan for bringing this forward. It is a great achievement early in her political life, having been returned in a by-election, to have her Bill adopted by the Government and it is a tribute to her concern in this area.
We are going through a difficult and traumatic period. Revelations have emerged in the "States of Fear" documentary series and elsewhere concerning the duty of care which religious orders were obliged to uphold but clearly did not. This was in respect of vulnerable people under their care. People are finding it hard to deal with this terrible matter. It is a divisive, emotional and difficult issue. The Minister and Deputy O'Sullivan are to be commended for bringing this forward so that people who abused young boys and girls many years ago can be prosecuted and pursued through the courts.
I received a reminder of the difficulties in this area when I attended a recent political fund raising event in Shelbourne Park greyhound track. A gentleman approached me, asked if I was a TD and challenged me as to what I was doing about these issues. He did not mention the "States of Fear" programmes but he challenged me in an aggressive manner. One gets defensive when put in such a position. I guessed from the conversation that there was something on this man's mind. I said I would be delighted to take up the matter with the Minister and tried to reassure him that the Government was taking measures to right the wrongs done many years ago but he was not impressed and did not think the Government was doing enough. It was hard to convince him that things were being done. Our conversation lasted about 10 minutes but such was this man's traumatic experience at the hands of one religious order that he found it hugely difficult to tell me that he had been in this position. He had not been sexually abused but he had been horribly physically abused. He had been a member of what was something of a national institution, the Artane Boys Band. It is ironic and dreadful that while that band was playing at Croke Park such awful things were happening in Artane.
I am glad this legislation is coming forward and the Government is taking all the steps needed to ensure that people who went through the industrial schools get the justice which they richly deserved. It is difficult for Irish people to deal with this because, whether we like it or not, there was extensive church control of Irish society at that time, a virtual moral monopoly. It appears the whole society colluded in the mistreatment of the unfortunate individuals placed in orphanages. The members of the religious orders were not always uncaring but in a great many cases they were. We should fully acknowledge this collusion, which was not under duress. It was not spiteful collusion but those were the times. We will have to revisit this matter and examine it carefully.
The Taoiseach and the Minister for Education and Science are to be congratulated for making the public apology but that is not enough in this area. The man I met in Shelbourne Park will want much more than that, more even than a commission to investigate. The people affected will seek compensation and they will be right to do so. I hope the Government addresses this in an up front manner. There are many people with painful memories, who have suffered and feel that nothing was done for them for years. In some cases they tried to raise these allegations at various points in the past 30 years or so and that led to even more frustration. They made the complaints and because society had colluded in the process it refused to accept that this could possibly have happened. When allegations were made of child abuse by religious or non-religious people who were involved in the care of those children, the defining feature has been denial.
This legislation is a humane, proper and positive response to what has been played out in the newspapers and other media concerning sexual and other abuse. We must move forward while having regard to the dignity of the individuals who were treated this way. It is not an accident that the people mistreated in the industrial schools were vulnerable in that society or powerless and from a background which did not give them influence. They had been abandoned and were at the mercy of the State. Unfortunately it let them down, and it will have to pay for that because it is not right that people should have those painful and horrible memories. Justice can and will be done.
I commend the Minister for what he has done and commend Deputy O'Sullivan for her courage in introducing the Bill. I am sure she will make a great impact in the future and I hope she will be a Minister some day and bring forward more legislation.