A survivor of the infamous Magdalene Laundries who claims to have been denied justice by the Irish State for over 20 years has taken her case to the United Nations.
Elizabeth Coppin, 70, from the Kerry town of Listowel, has brought a law suit to the UN Committee Against Torture, which is now investigating the state's treatment of her.
Coppin, who is now living in the UK, was born in a mother and baby home in 1949 before being sent to industrial schools and laundries in Cork and Waterford.
She said that the conditions in the laundries were appalling.
"I was dragged into the padded cell. There was no bed no there, no mattress, bread and water to drink," she said to the Examiner.
"While I was in there I was at my lowest and I knew that I had to do something if I got out of there because I would die in there like a lot of the women who were dying around me, working daily," she added.
Read more: Sinead O’Connor's torment as a victim of the Catholic Church's Magdalene Laundries
Coppin's case is the first case Magdalene Laundries case to be taken on by the UN Committee Against Torture and it could have ramifications for how the Irish State deals with historical abuse cases.
Her case has been taken by the Committee despite the fact that she received payments from the State for the abuse she suffered in industrial schools and laundries signed a statutory declaration waiving her right to take action against the State.
She says that the state's reparations weren't good enough and that it didn't sufficiently acknowledge its wrongdoing.
“What we got wasn’t good enough. We have been conned and scammed and they’re still denying our human rights were violated," she told the Irish Times.
In response to the news, a Department of Justice spokesperson said: "The Department of Foreign Affairs are taking the lead on coordinating a response and a number of departments will be required to provide input. The deadline for providing a response is 20th May, 2020.”
The Irish State has already paid out more than $60 million to victims of the Magdalene Laundries and former Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Enda Kenny issued a state apology in 2013.
Over 30,000 Irish women passed through the Magdalene Laundries over their 200-year history and many were subjected to systemic physical and sexual abuse. The discovery of a mass grave site at the location of a former Magdalene Laundry triggered a public scandal surrounding the laundries.
Read more: Just 23 years ago today the last Magdalene Laundry in Ireland closed its doors
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