The Women of Honour have called for the establishment of a transparent tribunal of inquiries to address abuse and misconduct in the Defence Forces.  

The group is due to meet the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste tomorrow at Government Buildings to propose the terms of reference for a tribunal of inquiry and a report that will be made available to the public. 

“It will be more transparent which will work towards building confidence and trust,” the Women of Honour said in a statement today. 

“It can still allow for anonymity for those who want it, but it will finally put an end to the secrecy and concealment.” 

'Flawed review group'

The group is seeking an investigative process independent of the Department of Defence, criticising “the flawed Review Group”, the recommendations of which were published in March 2023. 

“When we first went in to talks with the Dept of Defence and the then Minister for Defence Simon Coveney we were very clear that we wanted a full independent statutory process,” the Women of Honour said. 

“The issues are too broad, too serious and too complicated for anything less. 

“[The review] did not have legal powers; it did not investigate anything, and it did not include all the necessary issues.” 

'Everything needs to be looked at'

The group said the Government’s terms of reference for a statutory process are “too narrow” and negatively influenced by the Department of Defence.  

“The Department of Defence needs to be investigated by a tribunal of inquiry and have no place deciding on the terms of reference,” it said.  

“In simple terms, the terms of reference need to look at all the football pitch. If, as proposed by the Government, in any match we only look at what happens inside the centre circle it would be a pointless exercise. 

“Everything on the pitch needs to be looked at.” 

The Women of Honour said the Defence Forces need to be overhauled in an “informed and structured way” rather than a “knee-jerk reaction to the current climate”.