David Ryan is the first Irish clerical abuse survivor to meet Pope Leo since the latter was elected to the papacy last May.
He is also the first of a tranche of thousands of men sexually abused as children in schools across Ireland who came forward following the broadcast in November 2022 of Blackrock Boys, an RTÉ Radio 1 documentary.
It detailed the sexual abuse suffered by David Ryan and his late brother Mark at Blackrock College and Willow Park preparatory school in south Co Dublin while they were aged between 12 and 17.
After the broadcast hundreds of men came forward initially with similar stories of being abused at the schools which, in turn, led to many men making similar allegations about their abuse at many schools across the State. They included some of the most prestigious such as Belvedere College, Clongowes Wood, Rockwell, Castleknock College, Newbridge College, Terenure College, Templeogue College, and others.
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A scoping inquiry, chaired by senior counsel Mary O’Toole, was set up to look at these allegations. Its report, published in September 2024, recorded 2,395 abuse allegations involving 884 abusers in 308 schools run by religious orders and others.
It expressed its view that many more abuse allegations had remained unreported. Some 182 survivors spoke in detail to the inquiry about what happened to them between the early 1960s and the early 1990s.
Over half of the 884 people accused were dead by then.
Mark Ryan – who along with David took part in the 2022 Blackrock Boys radio documentary – died suddenly in 2023 aged 62.
Abuse survivors told the scoping inquiry of their strong belief that their abuse could not have gone unnoticed by staff and others in the relevant schools. Some spoke of their belief, in instances, of cover-ups and collusion between some institutions of the State and the Church.
They also explained how the abuse they suffered had followed them through life as feelings of shame, responsibility, isolation, powerlessness and secrecy. And how this would manifest as mental health issues, confusion about sexuality, poor academic performance, failed relationships and marital break down.
Survivors made it clear that they wanted relevant religious orders and others held to account in public. Mindful of the adversarial nature of a tribunal, which is the normal method of public inquiry, O’Toole recommended a commission of inquiry. It is a less adversarial model but has the procedural flexibility to accommodate public testimony.
Her findings and recommendations led to the Government setting up a Commission of Investigation into the Handling of Historical Child Sexual Abuse in Schools last July.
Chaired by Court of Appeal judge Michael McGrath, it will investigate the handling of allegations or concerns of historical child sexual abuse in all-day and boarding schools in Ireland, including special schools, which occurred between 1927 and 2013. It is to report within five years.
