(IRELAND)
Dublin Gazette [Rathfarnham, Ireland]
April 19, 2025
Brand New RTÉ documentary this Wednesday reveals how jailed abusers were at the heart of their leadership and asset management
RTÉ Investigates examines the Christian Brothers handling of their wealth and assets, as they continue to fail victims of abuse in a brand new documentary to air this Wednesday night on RTÉ One and RTE Player.
After last year’s Scoping Inquiry predicted a vast scale of historical child sexual abuse in Irish schools, and recommended redress for victims, the Christian Brothers stood out, with the largest number of schools and the highest number of allegations. Once powerful, the traditional educator of Catholic Irish boys, the Christian Brothers order is still one of the richest. Its aging trustees hold on to an extensive property portfolio and a significant stake in the present, and future, of Irish education.
As a new wave of victims prepare to seek justice for abuse suffered in schools, RTÉ Investigates reporter Rita O’Reilly examines what the Christian Brothers order owns, how it’s handled property and school lands, and how convicted abusers previously helped manage its assets.
Robin Mandal, former President of the Royal Institute of Architects said: “I’m surprised at the number of properties. It really is a huge land bank. They are very, very valuable lands.”
Fergus Finlay, Chair of the Christine Buckley Foundation which provides support services for survivors of institutional abuse in Ireland told RTÉ Investigates: “The public should own these assets, every single one of them. They were given to an order that had taken a vow of poverty, and they were given for the purposes of education.”
The Scoping Inquiry followed the broadcast of the RTÉ Documentary on One Blackrock Boys in which Mark and David Ryan spoke about sexual abuse they suffered during the 1970s on the campus of Blackrock College, run by the former Holy Ghost Order. Their story gave many other men courage to speak about alleged abuse at schools run by religious orders around the country.