NORTHERN IRELAND
Irish Times
Gerry Moriarty
Victims of historical sexual, physical and emotional child abuse in church and state institutions in Northern Ireland have accused Stormont of failing to face up to the need to provide proper compensation for their suffering.
Two victims who addressed the Northern Assembly’s Executive committee on Wednesday were also critical of the Catholic Primate Archbishop Eamon Martin.
Jon McCourt of Survivors North West and Margaret McGuckian of Survivors and Victims of Institutional Abuse said that when they met Archbishop Martin in July they got the impression that he felt the Catholic church was the victim rather than the survivors.
Mr McCourt said they felt “belittled” at the meeting.
“The church, I think, just literally fobbed us off and in fact there was a point where both Margaret and I were going to get up and leave the meeting because we were more or less told that if the church hadn’t done what it done in the ’50s or ’60s things could have been a lot worse for us,” he said
“In other words, we were made to feel so belittled in that meeting,” added Mr McCourt.
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