On 23rd October 2020 Senator Barry Ward made defamatory statements in the Seanad in relation to the Clann Project’s campaign to enable survivors, stakeholders and the public to email TDs and Senators to protest the Government’s unambiguous statement of intent to ‘seal’ the archives of the Mother and Baby Home Commission for 30 years.
Click here for a truncated transcript of Senator Ward’s comments, and the full debate is available here.
Below we provide our correspondence with the Cathaoirleach of the Seanad in relation to this matter, along with some of the media coverage surrounding the campaign.
CORRESPONDENCE
Clann Letter to the Cathaoirleach of the Seanad, 26 October 2020
Clann Letter to Cathaoirleach of the Seanad_26-10-20
Enclosures:
- Minister O’Gorman to introduce legislation to safeguard the Commission on Mother and Baby Homes general archive of records and database
- Mother and Baby Homes Inquiries_ 29 Sep 2020_ Written answers (KildareStreet.com)
- Adoption Data_ 29 Sep 2020_ Written answers (KildareStreet.com)
- MOTHER AND BABY HOMES COMMISSION ARCHIVE – Clann_ Ireland’s Unmarried Mothers and their Children_ Gathering the Data
- Text Message Thread_Redacted
Response From the Cathaoirleach of the Seanad, 26 November 2020
Cathaoirleach Letter to Clann_26-11-2020
Clann Letter to the Cathaoirleach of the Seanad, 19 December 2020
Clann Letter to Cathaoirleach of the Seanad 19-12-20
Letter from Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight, 9 February 2021
Letter from Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight to Clann_09-02-21
CLANN PROJECT RESPONSES ON SOCIAL MEDIA
MEDIA COVERAGE OF THE CAMPAIGN
Newspaper articles
Maeve O’Rourke, ‘Not too late for State to break the secrecy around Mother and Baby Homes’ Irish Examiner(17 October 2020)
Maeve O’Rourke, ‘Here’s a full analysis of the problems with the Government’s Mother and Baby Homes Bill’ thejournal.ie(21 October 2020)
Maeve O’Rourke, ‘Government has to follow through on Mother and Baby Homes pledges’ Business Post(31 October 2020)
Radio / podcast interviews by Dr Maeve O’Rourke
RTE Radio, Morning Ireland, ‘Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes is due to be published’ (16 October 2020)
The Irish Times Women’s Podcast, Episode 441: Sealing the Records: Maeve O’Rourke & Mary Harney (October 2020)
RTE News, RTE Six One and RTE Nine News, ‘Calls for transparency over Mother and Baby home files’ (26 October 2020)
Irish Legislation Podcast with Barry Ward, ‘Commission of Investigation (Mother and Baby Homes)‘ (26 October 2020)
RTE Radio, Drivetime, ‘Mother & Baby Home records’ (27 October 2020)
RTE Radio, Today with Claire Byrne, ‘Mother & Baby Homes’ (29 October 2020)
The Journal, The Explainer Podcast, ‘In Depth: What exactly happened with the mother and baby homes legislation?’ (November 2020)