The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has added its voice to calls from the public and from members of Government for the members of the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes to accept an invitation to appear before the Committee on Children, Equality, Disability, Integration, and Youth.
The criticisms of the Commission of Investigation Report into Mother and Baby Homes are well-documented and despite them being independent of Government, IHREC believes that it has a responsibility to respect the principles of transparency, openness, and accountability that underpin transitional justice.
Sinéad Gibney, Chief Commissioner of the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission stated:
“The Commission of Investigation Report into Mother and Baby Homes left many important questions unanswered for survivors, their families, and their supporters, in particular about how their personal testimony was dealt with.
The Oireachtas, having established the Commission of Investigation, is an appropriate forum for members of the Commission to account for how it exercised its mandate, including the limitations of that mandate. IHREC calls on members of the Commission to accept today’s invitation from the Committee on Children, Equality, Disability, Integration, and Youth to answer questions from public representatives, in a public forum, about its work.”