Latest news with #unmarriedwomen
Malay Mail
14-07-2025
- Malay Mail
Excavation begins at suspected mass baby grave in Ireland's Tuam mother and baby home scandal
DUBLIN, July 14 — Excavations begin today of an unmarked mass burial site at a former mother and baby home in western Ireland suspected of containing the remains of hundreds of infants and young children. The planned two-year probe by Irish and foreign experts in Tuam comes more than a decade after an amateur historian first uncovered evidence of a mass grave there. Subsequent 2016-2017 test excavations found significant quantities of baby remains in a subterranean disused septic tank at the location, which now sits within a housing complex. Catholic nuns ran a so-called 'mother and baby' institution there between 1925 and 1961, housing women who had become pregnant outside of marriage and been shunned by their families. After giving birth, some children lived in the homes too but many more were given up for adoption under a system that often saw church and state work in tandem. Oppressive and misogynistic, the institutions—which operated nationwide, some not closing until as recently as 1998 — represent a dark chapter in the history of once overwhelmingly Catholic and socially conservative Ireland. A six-year enquiry sparked by the initial discoveries in Tuam found 56,000 unmarried women and 57,000 children passed through 18 such homes over a 76-year period. It also concluded that 9,000 children had died in the various state- and Catholic Church-run homes nationwide. Records unearthed show as many as 796 babies and young children died at the Tuam home over the decades that it operated. Its grounds have been left largely untouched after the institution was knocked down in 1972 and housing was built there. A fierce battle 'These children were denied every human right in their lifetime, as were their mothers,' Anna Corrigan, whose two siblings may have been buried at the Tuam site, told reporters earlier this month. 'And they were denied dignity and respect in death.' Ireland's Office of the Director of Authorised Intervention (ODAIT) will undertake the excavation, alongside experts from Colombia, Spain, Britain, Canada and the United States. It will involve exhumation, analysis, identification if possible, and re-interment of the remains found, its director Daniel MacSweeney told a recent press conference in Tuam. It follows local historian Catherine Corless in 2014 producing evidence that the 796 children—from newborns to a nine-year-old—had died at the home. State-issued death certificates she compiled show that various ailments, from tuberculosis and convulsions to measles and whooping cough, were listed as the cause of death. Corless's research indicated the corpses were likely placed in the disused septic tank discovered in 1975, while prompting the state-backed enquiries that have uncovered the full scandal of the homes. The ODAIT team was finally appointed in 2023 to lead the Tuam site excavation. DNA samples have already been collected from around 30 relatives, and this process will be expanded in the coming months to gather as much genetic evidence as possible, according to MacSweeney. A 2.4-meter-high (7.9 feet) hoarding has been installed around the perimeter of the excavation area, which is also subject to 24-hour security monitoring to ensure its forensic integrity. 'It's been a fierce battle. When I started this nobody wanted to listen. At last we are righting the wrongs,' Corless, 71, told AFP in May. 'I was just begging: 'take the babies out of this sewage system and give them the decent Christian burial that they were denied',' she said. — AFP
CBS News
14-07-2025
- General
- CBS News
Excavations beginning at mass grave site of babies and children at former home for unwed mothers in Ireland
Excavations begin Monday of an unmarked mass burial site at a former mother and baby home in western Ireland suspected of containing the remains of hundreds of infants and young children. The planned two-year probe by Irish and foreign experts in Tuam comes more than a decade after an amateur historian first uncovered evidence of a mass grave there. Subsequent 2016-2017 test excavations found significant quantities of baby remains in a subterranean disused septic tank at the location, which now sits within a housing complex. Scientists say the remains are largely mixed together, the BBC reports, and a number of methods will be used to try to put remains back together and, where possible, identify them. Catholic nuns ran a so-called "mother and baby" institution there between 1925 and 1961, housing women who had become pregnant outside of marriage and been shunned by their families. After giving birth, some children lived in the homes too but many more were given up for adoption under a system that often saw church and state work in tandem. The history of unwed mothers forced into hard labor is a well-documented dark chapter in Irish history. Oppressive and misogynistic, the institutions -- which operated nationwide, some not closing until as recently as 1998 -- represent a dark chapter in the history of once overwhelmingly Catholic and socially conservative Ireland. A six-year enquiry sparked by the initial discoveries in Tuam found 56,000 unmarried women and 57,000 children passed through 18 such homes over a 76-year period. Excavation workers seen on July 7, 2025, during the media briefing, ahead of the excavation at St Mary's home for unmarried mothers and their children which was run by the Bon Secours Sisters, a religious order of Catholic nuns in Tuam, Galway. Niall Carson/PA Images via Getty Images It also concluded that 9,000 children had died in the various state- and Catholic Church-run homes nationwide. Records unearthed show as many as 796 babies and young children died at the Tuam home over the decades that it operated. Its grounds have been left largely untouched after the institution was knocked down in 1972 and housing was built there. "They were denied dignity and respect" "These children were denied every human right in their lifetime, as were their mothers," Anna Corrigan, whose two siblings may have been buried at the Tuam site, told reporters earlier this month. "And they were denied dignity and respect in death." Corrigan told the BBC that the start of the excavation was "both welcome and difficult." "While it's a relief to see work started on the site, it's really only the latest stage in what is still a long road for all of us," she said. "I won't rest until I see justice for my two brothers who not only need a proper Christian burial but also the full rigors of the law applied." Anna Corrigan, sister of two boys who died at the home, reacts at the excavation site of the Mother and Baby institution in Tuam, at the site in Co Galway, western Ireland, on July 7, 2025, ahead of excavations commencing. PAUL FAITH/AFP via Getty Images Annette McKay, whose mother Maggie was sent to the home in Tuam when she was 17, told BBC Radio program that she believes her older sister Mary Margaret's remains could be in the mass grave. "Mum's grave still doesn't have her name on the headstone," she told BBC Radio. "It has my brother's and it has my stepfather's and I was the one that said 'let's wait for Mary Margaret'." Ireland's Office of the Director of Authorised Intervention (ODAIT) will undertake the excavation, alongside experts from Colombia, Spain, Britain, Canada and the United States. It will involve exhumation, analysis, identification if possible, and re-interment of the remains found, its director Daniel MacSweeney told a recent press conference in Tuam. It follows local historian Catherine Corless in 2014 producing evidence that the 796 children -- from newborns to a nine-year-old -- had died at the home. State-issued death certificates she compiled show that various ailments, from tuberculosis and convulsions to measles and whooping cough, were listed as the cause of death. Corless's research indicated the corpses were likely placed in the disused septic tank discovered in 1975, while prompting the state-backed enquiries that have uncovered the full scandal of the homes. The ODAIT team was finally appointed in 2023 to lead the Tuam site excavation. DNA samples have already been collected from around 30 relatives, and this process will be expanded in the coming months to gather as much genetic evidence as possible, according to MacSweeney. A 8-foot-high hoarding has been installed around the perimeter of the excavation area, which is also subject to 24-hour security monitoring to ensure its forensic integrity. "It's been a fierce battle. When I started this nobody wanted to listen. At last we are righting the wrongs," Corless, 71, told AFP in May. "I was just begging: 'take the babies out of this sewage system and give them the decent Christian burial that they were denied'," she said.
France 24
14-07-2025
- France 24
Excavations begin at child mass grave site in Ireland
The planned two-year probe by Irish and foreign experts in Tuam comes more than a decade after an amateur historian first uncovered evidence of a mass grave there. Subsequent 2016-2017 test excavations found significant quantities of baby remains in a subterranean disused septic tank at the location, which now sits within a housing complex. Catholic nuns ran a so-called "mother and baby" institution there between 1925 and 1961, housing women who had become pregnant outside of marriage and been shunned by their families. After giving birth, some children lived in the homes too but many more were given up for adoption under a system that often saw church and state work in tandem. Oppressive and misogynistic, the institutions -- which operated nationwide, some not closing until as recently as 1998 -- represent a dark chapter in the history of once overwhelmingly Catholic and socially conservative Ireland. A six-year enquiry sparked by the initial discoveries in Tuam found 56,000 unmarried women and 57,000 children passed through 18 such homes over a 76-year period. It also concluded that 9,000 children had died in the various state- and Catholic Church-run homes nationwide. Records unearthed show as many as 796 babies and young children died at the Tuam home over the decades that it operated. Its grounds have been left largely untouched after the institution was knocked down in 1972 and housing was built there. 'A fierce battle' "These children were denied every human right in their lifetime, as were their mothers," Anna Corrigan, whose two siblings may have been buried at the Tuam site, told reporters earlier this month. "And they were denied dignity and respect in death." Ireland's Office of the Director of Authorised Intervention (ODAIT) will undertake the excavation, alongside experts from Colombia, Spain, Britain, Canada and the United States. It will involve exhumation, analysis, identification if possible, and re-interment of the remains found, its director Daniel MacSweeney told a recent press conference in Tuam. It follows local historian Catherine Corless in 2014 producing evidence that the 796 children -- from newborns to a nine-year-old -- had died at the home. State-issued death certificates she compiled show that various ailments, from tuberculosis and convulsions to measles and whooping cough, were listed as the cause of death. Corless's research indicated the corpses were likely placed in the disused septic tank discovered in 1975, while prompting the state-backed enquiries that have uncovered the full scandal of the homes. The ODAIT team was finally appointed in 2023 to lead the Tuam site excavation. DNA samples have already been collected from around 30 relatives, and this process will be expanded in the coming months to gather as much genetic evidence as possible, according to MacSweeney. A 2.4-meter-high (7.9 feet) hoarding has been installed around the perimeter of the excavation area, which is also subject to 24-hour security monitoring to ensure its forensic integrity. "It's been a fierce battle. When I started this nobody wanted to listen. At last we are righting the wrongs," Corless, 71, told AFP in May.
News.com.au
14-07-2025
- General
- News.com.au
Excavations begin at child mass grave site in Ireland
Excavations begin Monday of an unmarked mass burial site at a former mother and baby home in western Ireland suspected of containing the remains of hundreds of infants and young children. The planned two-year probe by Irish and foreign experts in Tuam comes more than a decade after an amateur historian first uncovered evidence of a mass grave there. Subsequent 2016-2017 test excavations found significant quantities of baby remains in a subterranean disused septic tank at the location, which now sits within a housing complex. Catholic nuns ran a so-called "mother and baby" institution there between 1925 and 1961, housing women who had become pregnant outside of marriage and been shunned by their families. After giving birth, some children lived in the homes too but many more were given up for adoption under a system that often saw church and state work in tandem. Oppressive and misogynistic, the institutions -- which operated nationwide, some not closing until as recently as 1998 -- represent a dark chapter in the history of once overwhelmingly Catholic and socially conservative Ireland. A six-year enquiry sparked by the initial discoveries in Tuam found 56,000 unmarried women and 57,000 children passed through 18 such homes over a 76-year period. It also concluded that 9,000 children had died in the various state- and Catholic Church-run homes nationwide. Records unearthed show as many as 796 babies and young children died at the Tuam home over the decades that it operated. Its grounds have been left largely untouched after the institution was knocked down in 1972 and housing was built there. - 'A fierce battle' - "These children were denied every human right in their lifetime, as were their mothers," Anna Corrigan, whose two siblings may have been buried at the Tuam site, told reporters earlier this month. "And they were denied dignity and respect in death." Ireland's Office of the Director of Authorised Intervention (ODAIT) will undertake the excavation, alongside experts from Colombia, Spain, Britain, Canada and the United States. It will involve exhumation, analysis, identification if possible, and re-interment of the remains found, its director Daniel MacSweeney told a recent press conference in Tuam. It follows local historian Catherine Corless in 2014 producing evidence that the 796 children -- from newborns to a nine-year-old -- had died at the home. State-issued death certificates she compiled show that various ailments, from tuberculosis and convulsions to measles and whooping cough, were listed as the cause of death. Corless's research indicated the corpses were likely placed in the disused septic tank discovered in 1975, while prompting the state-backed enquiries that have uncovered the full scandal of the homes. The ODAIT team was finally appointed in 2023 to lead the Tuam site excavation. DNA samples have already been collected from around 30 relatives, and this process will be expanded in the coming months to gather as much genetic evidence as possible, according to MacSweeney. A 2.4-meter-high (7.9 feet) hoarding has been installed around the perimeter of the excavation area, which is also subject to 24-hour security monitoring to ensure its forensic integrity. "It's been a fierce battle. When I started this nobody wanted to listen. At last we are righting the wrongs," Corless, 71, told AFP in May. "I was just begging: 'take the babies out of this sewage system and give them the decent Christian burial that they were denied'," she said. pmu-jj/giv/rsc
Free Malaysia Today
05-06-2025
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Sichuan province to offer extended marriage and maternity leave
The Sichuan province has emerged as one of the more progressive in China. (Wikipedia pic) HONG KONG : Health authorities in China's southwestern Sichuan province are proposing to extend marriage leave up to 25 days and maternity leave up to 150 days, to help create a 'fertility-friendly society' which boosts the country's population. The move comes as China's government struggles to boost birth rates in the world's second-largest economy. China's population fell for a third consecutive year in 2024 and experts have cautioned the downturn will continue to worsen. Sichuan's Health Commission, which published the draft on its website, is seeking public opinion and comments from May 30 to June 30. Sichuan province has a population of 84 million, more than most countries including Germany and the United Kingdom. The proposal would extend marriage leave by 400% from the five days currently given and more than double the existing 60-day maternity leave period. Sichuan also plans to extend paternity leave to 30 days from 20 days to 'facilitate the care of men for their wives after childbirth and help advocate that couples share the responsibility of raising children', authorities said. The province has emerged as one of the more progressive in China. It has allowed unmarried women to access IVF treatment and in 2023 authorities there announced that unmarried individuals would be eligible for benefits reserved for married couples. China's birth rates have been falling for decades as a result of the one-child policy China implemented from 1980 to 2015 as well as rapid urbanisation. The high cost of childcare and education as well as job uncertainty and a slowing economy have also discouraged many young Chinese from getting married and starting a family. Authorities rolled out a series of 'fertility friendly' measures in 2024 to minimise the challenge of having roughly 300 million Chinese expected to enter retirement in the coming decade – the equivalent of almost the entire US population. Measures include urging China's colleges and universities to provide 'love education' to emphasize positive views on marriage, love, fertility and family. In November, China's State Council, or cabinet, rallied local governments to direct resources towards fixing China's population crisis and spread respect for childbearing and marriages 'at the right age'. More than 2.6 million couples filed for divorce last year, the data showed, up 1.1% from 2.59 million in 2023.
