SCOTLAND
Herald Scotland
NUNS from a charity accused of abusing children at a Catholic orphanage throughout the 1980s have said the claims were a “mystery” as the institution was described as “a safe haven” for deprived children.
One local councillor had described it as a “showpiece” for childcare, the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry was told.
However Smyllum Park, in Lanark, has been the focus of claims children were systematically physically abused, and routinely humiliated for offences such as bedwetting.
It is notorious for the graves of up to 158 children who died at the home, left unmarked in nearby St Mary’s churchyard.
At the inquiry, two members of the Catholic order the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent De Paul, were quizzed about the management of six children’s homes run by the congregation. However Smyllum Park, which operated from 1864-1981 dominated the questions from inquiry lead senior counsel Colin Macaulay QC.
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