UNITED KINGDOM
The Guardian

Ruth Stark
Guardian Professional, Wednesday 22 January 2014

What do adult survivors of childhood abuse really need when they open up about their experiences and expose themselves to public scrutiny? Justice or acknowledgement of the trauma they have suffered?

Northern Ireland and Scotland have set up initiatives that aim to provide a place for abuse survivors to talk about their experiences. The Historical Institutional Abuse (HIA) Inquiry has begun in Northern Ireland, and new legislation in Scotland will establish a National Confidential Forum that will work in partnership with the Mental Welfare Commission.

In England, social workers at a recent workshop on the subject suggested that people who have been abused need to feel believed. But victims of abuse, who have been through public inquiries, say it is justice they seek.

Human rights and social justice are inextricably linked. This is written into the…