A family's escape from an urban lifestyle led to sex abuse

The  story began in 1982 when a German family moved to Ireland, one of the several thousand who did so in that decade, rejecting…

The  story began in 1982 when a German family moved to Ireland, one of the several thousand who did so in that decade, rejecting the materialistic lifestyle they saw around them in Germany. Peter and Katrina (not their real names) moved to a broken-down cottage in the north-west with their baby son. Within a year they had a daughter, Anna.

They lived in very poor conditions, without electricity or running water, and by 1987 the marriage was in difficulties.

It became clear to Katrina that Peter liked to maintain the isolation and poor conditions they lived in and did not want to engage with the neighbours. He did not want the children to go to school and he became violent towards her.

In 1991 he moved out of the house, but camped in the area and often visited. She was assaulted during such visits and in September 1992 obtained a barring order.

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The following April he camped in a field near the house and in June broke in and assaulted her again. He was charged with violating the barring order, but eventually the charges were struck out when he agreed to stay away from the house. In April 1994 Katrina got a judicial separation, under which the children would visit their father at weekends.

Around this time Anna was hospitalised twice complaining of abdominal pains. No clinical cause was found. She and her brother also saw a social worker and a psychologist following the break-up of their parents' marriage.

Peter also contacted the services of the North Western Health Board, claiming depression, and Katrina recalls a case conference concerning him that she was asked to attend at this time.

In October 1998 Anna told her brother and her mother that her father had sexually abused her from 1992 until 1995, when her father started a relationship with another woman and moved away from the area. Anna was showing the symptoms of anorexia nervosa and in December of that year developed bulimia.

Katrina is critical of the behaviour of the health board at this time.

She said that when she sought help from the board the Monday after Anna's disclosure she was told the matter would have to be reported to the Garda before the board could do anything for her. Anna was not ready for this. So her daughter did not get the help she needed, Katrina told The Irish Times.

By April 1999 Anna had lost over two stone, and Katrina brought her to the local GP, who organised counselling by a health board psychologist.

The GP explained that a report would have to go to the Garda, and eventually one did. This led to Sgt Noel Casey contacting Katrina and, eventually, to the conviction of Peter in a German court for sexually abusing his daughter.

Katrina has a number of issues she is attempting to raise with the health board. She wanted all its records of the dealings her family had with board personnel from the early 1990s, as she wanted to prepare her evidence for the court case, and sought them through the Freedom of Information Act.

She did not get the files, and the board responded by pointing out that they relate to Anna, who is an adult, and, because of their sensitivity, have to be examined under supervision in the health board offices. Although Anna has signed a joint request with her mother seeking them, only she is permitted to see them.

Katrina is also concerned that, because the health board insisted on a report to the Garda when she first sought help for her daughter and did not explain the procedures adequately, Anna was left suffering unnecessarily from an eating disorder that could have been life-threatening.

The North Western Health Board issued the following statement when these points were put by The Irish Times: "For reasons of client confidentiality we are precluded from commenting on individual cases.

"All matters dealt with under the Freedom of Information legislation are handled in a strictly confidential and sensitive manner.

"If any individual, however, wishes to appeal any decision made under this legislation they are at liberty to do so.

"They can appeal at a local level and they can also do so at national level through the information commissioner.

"When a health board suspects that a child has been physically or sexually abused or wilfully neglected An Garda Síochána must be formally notified in accordance with the Children First and national guidelines for the protection and welfare of children."