A LIMERICK woman who was born in Sean Ross Abbey mother and baby home says the latest discoveries at the former Tuam home demand that ground at her birthplace be opened to find out where the missing babies are.
Ann Connolly is one of the leading campaigners of the ‘We’re Still Here’ Sean Ross Abbey survivors group, who want an underground structure and land adjacent to the angel’s burial plot there excavated.
The group says there are still no answers for women about what happened to 900 unaccounted for babies who died at the home but have no marked grave.
Over the last few months, a meticulous excavation, prompted by the discovery of infant remains in a former septic tank, has uncovered more human remains (juvenile and adult), personal items like tiny shoes and bottles. An identification program for relatives is being run in tandem.
“What is happening in Tuam is showing the country that the truth can stay hidden underground for generations, even when everything looks normal on the surface. And that is exactly why Sean Ross Abbey needs to be excavated before more time is lost, while the mothers of these children are still alive,” said Ann.
A previous ultrasound exploration of the ground adjoining the angel’s plot in the former institution in Roscrea revealed “anomalies” but campaigners were told these did not warrant further exploration.
“At Sean Ross Abbey, 1,090 babies died. Only 269 burials were ever recorded. That leaves over 800 babies with no confirmed resting place. 23 young women also died there.
“These children did not simply ‘pass away’. Many died from preventable causes including malnutrition, untreated infections, overcrowded and cold rooms, neglect, and a lack of proper medical care,” said Ann.
“The Government uses phrases like ‘manifestly inappropriate’ to avoid digging. They say there is no evidence – but how can there be evidence when they refuse to look?
“Tuam has already shown Ireland that babies can be buried beneath ordinary ground, that scans cannot detect remains, and that you only find the truth when you excavate. Sean Ross Abbey deserves the same truth.”
The survivors group also wants to see full disclosure of records for Sean Ross Abbey.
“The government has locked away the institutional records for the next 30 years. These are the medical files, inspection reports, internal letters, adoption documents, correspondence about deaths, and the State’s own communications about how mothers and babies were treated. People deserve to know exactly what is being sealed,” said Ann.
“These records include what inspectors wrote, the warnings that were ignored, the conditions the children lived and died in, and who allowed it.
“They also include the truth about the mothers: the forced labour, the punishment, the dangerous birth conditions, the lack of pain relief, the medical neglect, the babies taken without consent, the coerced or forged signatures, the illegal birth registrations, the adoption arrangements and what really happened to the 23 young women who died there.
“They also contain information about pharmaceutical companies entering these institutions and carrying out trials on babies without their mothers’ knowledge. These are the facts being hidden.
“The Government has seen these records. We have not. They know the truth and they have chosen to lock it away from the very people who lived it. That is not preservation. That is control. And it is cruelty.”