If You Come Here You’ll Find No Mass Conspiracy

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From top: Patsy McGarry;  This morning’s Irish Times

‘Last week too it was erroneously claimed that the Data Protection Act 2018*  – which implements the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) – meant the commission could no longer abide by provisions of the 2004 Act which set it up, and stipulated that documents it accumulated must be placed beyond public access.’

Irish Times Religious Affairs Correspondent Patsy McGarry

No grand conspiracy to protect those responsible for mother and baby homes (Patsy McGarry, Irish Times)

Meanwhile…

Katherine O’Donnell, of the Justice for Magdalenes Research (JFMR), tweetz:

Quick thoughts on the Irish Times coverage of Repeal the Seal…

1. Portraying adopted people’s and public anger at repeated Government. declarations that records would be sealed for 30 years as a misunderstanding of the bill and Government’s good intentions.

2. Blaming ‘hurt & upset’ of survivors on survivor/activists and academics protesting the system whereby adopted people are denied the name their mothers gave them and personal data – is to refuse to hear the empowered voices of survivors demanding their human rights.

3. Accusing activists and particularly academics of ‘wilfully’ misrepresenting the Bill and Commission and deliberately and unnecessarily upsetting ‘those people affected’ is not merely wrong (and injurious) but dangerous to fostering informed respectful public debate.

4. Sustained a very unusual level of ‘inaccuracies’ in The Irish Times is troubling e.g. 2004 Act does not in fact seal archives – Magdalene Inquiry wasn’t based on this Act. etc. Failure to ask critical questions – such as isn’t it illegal for Commission to destroy a database?

Good reporters editorialising on behalf of Government is a betrayal of journalistic standards –  we need them to continue to hold power to account. Coverage in The Journal and Irish Examiner was so much better.

Finally – we would not have achieved any justice measures won (so far) without the level of engaged and informed debate on Twitter. I’m looking forward to Irish Twitter continuing to listening and  informing each other, debating and critiquing – we have an ongoing job to ensure justice.

McGarry, eh?

Earlier: This New Position Has Huge Implications

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8 thoughts on “If You Come Here You’ll Find No Mass Conspiracy

  1. GiggidyGoo

    Four pointers to McGarry on how to do his job. Will he learn? Nope. Divert/Distract is par for the course.

    The McAleese whitewash stands out as another of his ‘jobs’

  2. D

    GDPR including all EU Regulations dont need to be implemented. In fact the EU dont allow any statute to implement. they have to be followed as if. Directives need implementation.

    GDPR is not implemented by the Data Protection Act. All EU measures have supremacy over national legislation.

    this is the third time in as many weeks ive noted on broadsheet comments how inaccurate the Irishtimes is. The irishtimes is seen as professional as its competitor the Irish Independent is even worse.

      1. Truth in the News

        What everyone now suspects that a secret deal was done at some stage for the
        Religion Orders to cooperate in furnishing documents to the Commission and
        at some stage, this was enacted in legislation that the records would be destroyed
        at a certain stage when the Commission had furnished it’s report, which it has
        not, it seems now somewhat bizarre, that the attempt to lock away the records
        first for 70 odd years and finally ending up at 30 is somewhat pointless when
        European Legislation does the opposite and provides the right of access for
        those who need answers…,the fundamental question who is advising the Gov
        Surely Patsy McGarry of all people given his vast experience in questioning
        many aspects of Church and State affairs, should at some stage asked why this
        debacle arose in the last couple weeks, perhaps he has forgotten that the
        hand of the Catholic Church in Ireland moves in many obscure and hidden
        ways, and can longer rely on a belt of the crozier

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