IRELAND
Scottish Catholic Observer
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has today found the Irish state liable for sexual abuse suffered by a girl at the hands of the principal of a Catholic-run state primary school in the 1970s
In the case of Louise O’Keefe—who was 9 years old when she was abused at Dunderrow National School, Cork—both the High Court and Supreme Court in Ireland had ruled that the state was not responsible for the assaults. However, the ECHR today overruled their judgements.
“The court found that it was an inherent obligation of a government to protect children from ill-treatment, especially in a primary education context,” the Strasbourg-based court said in its ruling. “That obligation had not been met.”
Ms O’Keefe, now 49 years old, said she was ‘delighted’ that the Irish state had been held accountable by the European Court.
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