First cousins of children believed to be buried at the site of the former mother-and-baby home in Tuam are set to be included in an identification programme under changes agreed by Cabinet on Tuesday.
The Institutional Burials Act is the legislation that provides for the excavation, recovery, identification and reburial of the children’s remains at the site of the former mother-and-baby institution in Tuam, Co Galway.
Part 4 of the Act provides for an identification programme, which establishes whether there is a familial link between people who believe they have a family member buried there with human remains that are recovered.
Where the familial link is established, the recovered remains are then identified.
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Minister for Children Norma Foley announced on Tuesday that this programme will include first cousins if the necessary legislation is passed by the Houses of the Oireachtas.
She brought the proposals to Government on foot of updated scientific advice from Forensic Science Ireland that supports the inclusion of first cousins in an identification programme under the Act.
Currently, an eligible family includes children, parents, siblings, half-siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, half-nieces, half-nephews, grandnieces or grandnephews.
The Minister acknowledged the importance of the identification programme for families.
“Forensic Science Ireland recently informed me of new scientific developments since the enactment of the legislation that allow for DNA matching of sufficient quality to support the inclusion of first cousins in an identification programme,” she said.
“I understand that there are first cousins who are interested in participating in the Tuam Identification Programme, so I, and the Government were keen to move quickly on this when the scientific advice was updated.”
She added: “The Government has now approved my proposal to amend the Institutional Burials Act 2022 to include first cousins in an identification programme.”
[ What Census 1926 reveals about lives of children 100 years agoOpens in new window ]
Officials in the Department of Children, Disability and Equality will now work with the Office of the Attorney General to draft amendments with a view to introducing them in the Houses of Oireachtas “as soon as possible”, the department said.
Welcoming the announcement, special advocate Patricia Carey said “It is crucial that all those who believe that they have a relative who died and is buried at the site of the former county home intuitions have access to the DNA programme for those 796 children who died and they are buried there.”
She said dignified memorialisation is part of redress for families who have loved ones who are disappeared and it is not yet known where they are buried.
Earlier this month, the office responsible for the excavation of the site announced the remains of 36 infants buried in the grounds of the mother and baby home were uncovered, bringing the number of bodies to 69.
The home run by the Bon Secours Sisters on behalf of Galway County Council operated between 1925-1961 as a Catholic-run institution for unmarried mothers and their children.
In 2014, historian Catherine Corless discovered 796 infants and children had died there. A subsequent investigation found many had been buried in an unmarked mass grave within a former septic tank.
The search for human remains, which began last July, now extends to several areas of the grounds.
[ Further 36 infant remains recovered at Tuam mother and baby home siteOpens in new window ]
