The proposals from Mr Justice Ryan for ending the impasse of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse are to be welcomed, and offer a way forward. The fact that they have been broadly welcomed by most of the groups representing victims is encouraging.
When Ms Justice Laffoy resigned amid recriminations with the Government last September, the commission seemed to have run into a brick wall, still far from finding out what happened in the various residential institutions into which children were put during the middle decades of the last century.
It was bogged down in adversarial proceedings with the institutions concerned, who were anxious to protect their good names and that of the individuals who had served them. It had to defend its procedures in the courts more than once. It also complained of a lack of co-operation from the Department of Education, and a lack of adequate resources.
There were more than 1,700 complaints made to its Investigation Committee, which could have led to 1,700 mini-trials, with full legal representation on all sides. This would have cost an incalculable amount of money (€500 million was estimated) and would have resulted in postponing a final report for many years. By then many of the victims and alleged perpetrators would be dead.
Mr Justice Ryan's proposal, to end the entitlement of all victims to have their complaints investigated by the Investigation Committee, is a bold one. Some of the victims will undoubtedly be disappointed that they will thereby lose their chance to confront their abusers in this forum. However, criminal proceedings may still be taken where there is evidence to back them, and all victims can tell their experiences to the Confidential Committee, which was set up to meet their need to tell their stories.
Mr Justice Ryan was right to stress the main objective of the Commission - to find out how and why child abuse took place in institutions in this State, not to investigate 1,700 allegations of abuse. He intends to establish whether this was systematic in certain institutions, establish responsibility for it and name those institutions. He will examine also the wider context in which this happened, looking at the social, political and economic environment of the time, the role of the courts and the relevant Government departments.
Above all, he said the commission should produce recommendations on the treatment of children in care in modern times. He asked whether this would be an achievement that would stand as a tribute to those people who suffered in such institutions in the past. Surely the answer to this question must be Yes.