MINISTER Wants Garda Investigation into Tuam Mass Grave

By Eimear O'Shea
Newstalk
June 3, 2014

http://www.newstalk.ie/Junior-Minister-wants-investigation-re-Tuam-mass-grave


Last week Fianna Fail Galway TD Colm Keaveney told this programme he has tabled a parliamentary question with an Taoiseach.

It’s believed almost 800 babies were buried in a mass grave next to the Tuam Mother and Baby home in Co Galway between 1925 and 1961.

The home was run by the Bons Secours nuns in Galway.

Minister for State Ciaran Cannon told this programme that a “state inquiry” and a “garda investigation” is needed.

Toni Maguire is an independent consultant archaeologist and anthropologist - she has worked extensively on ‘cillini’ graves or children's burial grounds in Northern Ireland - particularly Milltown cemetery in Belfast.

She told Newstalk Lunchtime that the discovery in Tuam is "not an unusual situation" and that it needs to be properly investigated. She says until then "a memorial is worst possible thing we could do at this time". She says "accesss to documentation is a problem" when graves like this are being looked into.

Minister of State for Training and Skills Ciaran Cannon also dicussed state exams and said that Leaving Cert students should have the option of doing their exams on computer rather than being forced to do a handwriting marathon