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Two sisters from County Donegal, Paula and Margaret Martin, who were victims of abuse by a former priest, have urged the Catholic Church in Ireland to adopt proactive measures that facilitate direct dialogue between survivors and church authorities in every diocese. Their call comes after a significant, legally mediated meeting with representatives from the Diocese of Raphoe last year, which they described as “deeply healing.”
The abuse began when the sisters were nine and eleven years old and was perpetrated by Con Cunningham, who was later sentenced in 2021 to 15 months in prison after admitting to eight counts of indecent assault dating back to the 1970s. Although the criminal conviction addressed part of their suffering, the Martin sisters expressed that much of their pain remained unacknowledged, particularly due to what they termed as the Church’s prolonged neglect and lack of meaningful engagement over nearly three decades. After years of uncertainty following the case, they intended to pursue civil legal action against the Church but were then invited by the Diocese of Raphoe’s legal team to participate in a mediated meeting with senior church figures.
This meeting took place in Londonderry and was overseen by a neutral mediator. Church representatives present included Monsignor Kevin Gillespie, the diocesan administrator appointed in 2024, retired Bishop Philip Boyce, who led Raphoe from 1995 to 2017 and had previously faced criticism for his handling of abuse cases, and Bishop Alan McGuckian, who served from 2017 until 2024. The sisters found the session to be a rare instance of open, honest exchange, with Paula Martin noting it provided “peace I had not expected” and an opportunity for the survivors to be “heard and understood” for the first time. Following the meeting, the Diocese of Raphoe publicly apologized, acknowledging a profound failure in their pastoral responsibility from 1994 to 2018.
In response to this situation, a spokesperson for the Irish Bishops Catholic Conference explained that mediation practices are not uniformly implemented throughout Ireland’s dioceses, with safeguarding personnel and varied restorative justice schemes guiding responses to individual survivors. The Church reiterated its commitment to ongoing learning and positive engagement to foster healing despite the painful past. Academic expert Professor Marie Keenan, a scholar studying child sexual abuse within the Church, affirmed that facilitated meetings with Church leaders are increasingly recognized as transformative experiences for survivors, providing vital validation, vindication, and accountability. She emphasized that meetings led by independent facilitators tend to yield better outcomes compared to informal encounters. Requests for further comment from the Diocese of Raphoe and the Bishop of Down and Connor’s office were unanswered
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