Whose Silence Fed the Violence?
Posted in Blog, Rants by: LottieMost people have heard about the Roscommon case of Incest and child abuse in which a mother was convicted of incest, abuse and neglect and sentenced to 7 years in prison. It has dominated the news in the past week and caused outrage and calls for reform.
In obiter comments, the court stated that the community had failed these children by not doing more to help. Later last week The Gerry Ryan Show discussed this issue of an alleged failure on the part of the local community and Ryan made some very haughty remarks stating that it was his belief that neighbours could have done more to help. What I would like to know is where they get off casting aspersions and judgments like this?
An upset member of the community contacted the show to say that they had done what they could. That the matter had been reported again and again and it was the State and the HSE that had failed this family.
Without a doubt, Ireland is losing that sense of community which we once had but having lived the latter part of my adolescence in a rather rough housing estate, I can imagine what this town experienced. A concerned neighbour becomes that nosey cow who gets a flaming rag through the letter box. A caring glance becomes an invitation for a torrent of abuse.
How many times did the HSE social workers visit this house? How often was the welfare of these six children brought to the attention of authorities? Why was the disgracefully apparent neglect neglected by those charged with protecting our youth? Why are our government and leaders trying to pass the buck onto a community in shock?
Later on the day of The Ryan show I stood at Tara Street Dart Station watching a father, Lucozade bottle of Dutch Gold shoved in his rear jean pocket, teach his sons how to spit down at people coming up the stairs. I watched his dilated eyes as he almost walked himself and his child backwards off the platform into an oncoming train. I watched the mother beat a toddler around the head for dropping her bottle. I watched and I thought to myself what should I do? For fear of vicious reprisal, I kept my mouth shut and boarded the train.
Some minutes later I listened as the father raced up and down the train screaming abuse and lashing out at everyone and anyone. Apparently someone had approached him with regard to the children and had felt his drunken wrath.
We live in an age of fear. We go to work, pay our taxes and we do our good deeds when we can. These taxes are then turned towards subsiding the habits of scum like this who neglect and abuse their families and get away with it. And now we have a state and people with the ear of a nation that wish to wash their hands of accountability and point the finger at private individuals.
Sounds about right.
January 26th, 2009 at 11:58 am
…I’m just after reading about this case and em… well… eh… f*ckin’ hell.
and my trademark “f*ck gerry ryan” closer; f*ck gerry ryan.
January 26th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
I have to hold up my hand and say that I am one of those people who always thinks, Where were their families? Their neighbours? Extended family?
I’d like to think that there is someone other than the guilty mother to blame.
That people turned blind eyes and that these children might somehow have been saved.
I’d like to think that if, God forbid, it were one of my sisters or friends doing this to their children that I would do all in my power to take the children away from her, even resorting to physically removing them from her, kidnap.
That’s what I’d like to think.
The fact that normal, everyday people had to witness this situation day in and day out, powerless to do anything about it when the regular routes of Social Workers and Gardaí just weren’t getting them anywhere…it just doesn’t bear thinking about. It’s easier to point the finger of blame and say they didn’t do all that they could have.
January 26th, 2009 at 12:08 pm
It’s worse than that, Lottie. Did you read Twenty’s post? Sinister Catholic organisation backing her and paying her legal fees. HSE visits all the time but nothing done.
I think it’s time to phone the gardai when you see shit like that on the train. Why not? It’s abuse,assault, neglect, public disorder. At least it would build a file for a future complaint.
January 26th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
[...] know my posting today is just shameless linking, but I really think everyone should go read this and get involved in a discussion and debate that is difficult to stomach but very [...]
January 26th, 2009 at 12:35 pm
Oops, editing not working. I think the HSE did try but got tied up by the legal system, as funded by the right wing organisation who helped her keep her kids in her house of horror.
All anti abortion stuff. The irony.
January 26th, 2009 at 12:53 pm
I find myself guilty of simply ignoring situations like the one you experienced on the train. Maybe we all ignore things like this before it’s too late, we’re guilty if we ignore and even more so if things end as they did in Roscommon. It’s a bit of a mind melt, maybe it’s just built in our Irish DNA to turn a blind eye. Maybe we need to be more brazen and brave, standing up for those who can’t?
January 26th, 2009 at 12:56 pm
The state are completely at fault here.
I have personal experience of an unhealthy living situation that has been reported to the HSE, the guards etc on numerous occasions. The situation has been reviewed numerous times and although the general conclusion is that the situation is hazardous to the family involved and their neighbours, nothing can be done because ‘it isn’t bad enough’.
It’s no where near as bad as this case but it’s still a fucking disgrace.
January 26th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
@B – How have you avoided it until now?
@Whoopsadiasy – I agree. The state aren’t mind readers. They need to be made aware of these situations and a concerned voice from the community is the only way. But how far can you go? Laying too much blame on a community that made serious and concerned efforts to get help for the children is very unfair.
@Jo -You’re right. It’s the bureaucracy that is a huge culprit.
@Jonathan – But what can you do? If you approach these people you risk a bottle to the face. You can call the Gardaí but what will happen. Hi Garda there’s a bloke on the train, he’s drunk and I don’t like the way he is talking to his children. Fair enough. you can’t go round restraining people until the authorities decide to take notice.
@Voodoolady – Im sorry to hear that but that’s it exactly. It’s akin to baning your head off a brick wall – there is only so far an individual person can go to protect these kids. They can’t exactly break into the house and pull the children away from their family.
January 26th, 2009 at 6:43 pm
I only see English news… 24 hours of it, but only english news.
People don’t think of discussing current affairs with me either
January 26th, 2009 at 9:19 pm
I’ve gotten a fair few knocks from breaking up fights between people I don’t know and gotten in plenty of uncomfortable situations due to helping people in trouble. Not all the time of coarse, I’m not fecking Mother Teresa.
If I know about that sort of thing going on in my neighbourhood, I’d inform the authorities and if it wasn’t sorted quickly I’d be sure to let people know what incompetent bastards whoever I informed was.
I should like to think that most people would do the same, if I don’t hope then I think I shall just go and live with the lions.
February 4th, 2009 at 3:04 pm
Im originally from the town and people did know that the kids were not being properly looked after but we never imagined the extent of the abuse. I know that it was reported to the health board on more than one occasions and you are right to say that you cant just knock on up to the door and try take kids off their mother. People did what they were permitted to do. We put our trust in the hands of the government officials and they failed to do their jobs.
The suggestions that we are somehow to blame for this has brought shame on the community and my mother who still lives there was very distraught by the comments. In fairness to Gerry Ryan it wasnt only he who made these statements as a presenter on the local station did the same.
Thanks so much for drawing attention to this. Hopefully most people will have the same attitude towards this.