The Tánaiste stated that Sinn Féin had “real issues” in handling problems related to sexual offences, and Mary Lou McDonald declared that the organisation will “completely overhaul” its governance practices, reports Breaking News.
Michael Martin expressed his amazement that Sinn Féin had taken so long to address the issue surrounding Michael McMonagle, the former party publicity officer.
Ms. McDonald expressed her regret on Monday for how the party handled the McMonagle sex crime inquiry.
There is growing pressure on the head of Sinn Féin to speak out about the issue, reports Breaking News.
First Minister of Northern Ireland and deputy president of Sinn Féin Michelle O’Neill apologised “deeply” to the Stormont Assembly on Monday for harming the standing of a charity that hired McMonagle following his departure from the republican party.
On Monday, Northern Ireland’s First Minister and Sinn Féin vice president Michelle O’Neill told the Stormont Assembly she was “deeply sorry” for damage caused to the reputation of a charity which employed McMonagle after he left the republican party.
Speaking on Tuesday morning, Mr Martin said: “I think it is surprising that they would require that governance overhaul on a matter that has been of ongoing concern within society for quite a long time. Sinn Féin would have had real issues in the past in terms of managing matters of this kind. One only has to refer back to how Mairia Cahill was treated by Mary Lou McDonald and by Sinn Féin at the time. It was shocking, as I recall it. I was attacked myself by Pearse Doherty and Mary Lou for raising the Mairia Cahill case, and they said some very uncharitable things about me,” reports Breaking News.
Sinn Féin apologised to Ms. Cahill, who has claimed that she was sexually assaulted by an IRA man when she was sixteen, after Ms. McDonald expressed sorrow for the way the party handled her rape accusation.
In the past, Ms. Cahill claimed that the IRA and Sinn Féin attempted to conceal the crime.
Mr Martin added: “One would have thought that from then onwards that their systems would have been overhauled and also in terms of other cases where people were abused by Provisional IRA members, and these came to light. There’s real history here and these were well thrashed out in the Dail in the past and it is surprising it has taken so long to overhaul those governance arrangements,” reports Breaking News.
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