She was born into an indigenous English Catholic family who were royalist and old Colonials. Indigenous English Catholics tend to be more royalist than anyone else in British society. Jacob Rees Mogg is a typical example of an indigenous English Catholic these days. The Duke of Norfolk is also an indigenous English Catholic. Historically, Guy Fawkes attempted to bomb the Houses of Parliament to do away with Parliament altogether and restore an absolute Catholic monarchy for indigenous English Catholicism. This is the mentality that was ingrained in Dr Moira Woods. She spoke with an old colonial accident throughout her entire life. People thought she spoke with a home counties accent which was not so: it was an old colonial accent that she retained.
Woods' infancy was spent in places like Malaysia, Singapore, and Burma where her father administered control as a high-ranking civil servant on behalf of the British Empire. He also had investments in rubber plantations. She benefited from a one-to-one education of the highest standard that would stand to her for the rest of her life.
Woods' infancy was spent in places like Malaysia, Singapore, and Burma where her father administered control as a high-ranking civil servant on behalf of the British Empire. He also had investments in rubber plantations. She benefited from a one-to-one education of the highest standard that would stand to her for the rest of her life.
After qualifying from Trinity College Dublin as a doctor at a very young age, she married a fellow student and went to work in Belfast and then the East Midlands of England as a hospital doctor. After the birth of two children the marriage broke down and she returned to Ireland. At the age of 29, and after getting her marriage annulled by the Catholic Church, she got married to one of her lecturers in Trinity College, Dr Robert Bobby Woods, a 62 year old eye specialist. It's believed the Roberts Woods' wife died by suicide and his marriage to Moira took place soon after that event. They were to go on to have four children together. Moira Woods was to inherit vast wealth from her late husband's estate, which included a house on Aylesbury Road in Dublin, properties in Merrion Square plus an art collection apart from whatever investments was attached to the estate. She wanted for nothing.
Moira Woods had the minimum of medical qualifications. She never practiced as a general practitioner or worked on a daily basis as a doctor. She kept her registration on the medical register and paid her annual fees. In reality, she kept her profession as a hobby that gave her a status in society. Soon after the death of a second husband she went into a 20 year relationship with the Chief of Staff of the Official IRA, Cathal Goulding. She was to have two more children with him. At this stage a group of middle-class women with strong bourgeois connections were demanding a greater slice of the bourgeois cake. Woods joined them in their campaigns, a lot of which were necessary and long overdue. They focused on genuine grievances towards women and were quite successful in focusing on serious inequalities and discrimination that women suffered. This is to their credit.
Unfortunately, eventually, they would become overzealous and one of the most hidden and disgusting chapters of recent Irish history was about to commence and has since remained hidden. But with the death of Woods on 27 March this year a new focus needs to be brought to all of it.
Woods set up the Sexual Assault unit in the Rotunda Hospital in Dublin approved by the then Minister for health Barry Desmond. It was to deal with adult rape victims, Woods extended that to child sexual abuse. This was to lead to her eventual demise, with permanent lifelong suffering for her victims, their families and their children, as a result of misdiagnosing so many. She got the backing from all of the feminist movement that to this day stands by everyone of her diagnoses to the very last, belittling any hard evidence to the contrary. They never once saw the victims of hers who are still suffering from the experiences of her evil work, as the feminist movement doesn't want its champion exposed. Her victims deserve the truth.
Woods claimed to have diagnosed sexual abuse in an extreme amount of the thousands of children she examined. She had no qualifications in this field whatsoever. She did not work in a multidisciplinary team. She was totally in control of everything, a self appointed guru. She was absolutely callous towards any man that was unfortunate enough to come into her orbit. Her apologists will tell us that only five cases were brought to the Medical Council out of the hundreds she dealt with. The reality is that five of the courageous families who were falsely accused said they were going to fight her to the bitter end and they did. The truth is that this was only the tip of the iceberg.
The false allegations of child sexual abuse and misdiagnosis would have horrendous consequences for a lot of innocent working class families with limited resources and only formal education. They found themselves up against the establishment, the feminist movement and Moira Woods' old colonial mentality along with her stiff upper lip arrogance.
Families were split up, children taken into care. In one case a child was taken away from her parents at three years old and only returned when she was six. Any child falsely taken from their parents carries a lifetime of pain when reflecting on the event. There are many adults today walking around Dublin and other places in Ireland who can verify that.
There were incidence of suicide among parents and particularly grandparents when these false allegations were made.
Woods claimed to have diagnosed sexual abuse in an extreme amount of the thousands of children she examined. She had no qualifications in this field whatsoever. She did not work in a multidisciplinary team. She was totally in control of everything, a self appointed guru. She was absolutely callous towards any man that was unfortunate enough to come into her orbit. Her apologists will tell us that only five cases were brought to the Medical Council out of the hundreds she dealt with. The reality is that five of the courageous families who were falsely accused said they were going to fight her to the bitter end and they did. The truth is that this was only the tip of the iceberg.
The false allegations of child sexual abuse and misdiagnosis would have horrendous consequences for a lot of innocent working class families with limited resources and only formal education. They found themselves up against the establishment, the feminist movement and Moira Woods' old colonial mentality along with her stiff upper lip arrogance.
Families were split up, children taken into care. In one case a child was taken away from her parents at three years old and only returned when she was six. Any child falsely taken from their parents carries a lifetime of pain when reflecting on the event. There are many adults today walking around Dublin and other places in Ireland who can verify that.
There were incidence of suicide among parents and particularly grandparents when these false allegations were made.
Probably the most horrendous and serious of all were two incidents of arson carried out in the Dublin area. There are photographs to show the extent of the damage of these arson attacks. Two families that would be later vindicated by the Medical Council had been the victims of those attacks.
When these false allegations were made men became particularly defenceless. If the marriage was not on a sound footing the women, if they supported the diagnosis, left the men defenceless. No appeal or a second opinion was available. Woods had complete control and had built up an industry around herself with a few militant feminist and social workers.
One of the cases where the marriage was on a firm footing and the children were taken from the parents, was of a soldier in the Irish army. He had been burned out of his house on the south side and had to be rehoused on the north side. A Sergeant in rank, he was shot at on a rifle range in the Dublin mountains by lower ranks. This is the sort of hysteria that was created around these false allegations. They were devastating beyond belief. This couple decided to fight Woods in the High Court and won.
When these false allegations were made men became particularly defenceless. If the marriage was not on a sound footing the women, if they supported the diagnosis, left the men defenceless. No appeal or a second opinion was available. Woods had complete control and had built up an industry around herself with a few militant feminist and social workers.
One of the cases where the marriage was on a firm footing and the children were taken from the parents, was of a soldier in the Irish army. He had been burned out of his house on the south side and had to be rehoused on the north side. A Sergeant in rank, he was shot at on a rifle range in the Dublin mountains by lower ranks. This is the sort of hysteria that was created around these false allegations. They were devastating beyond belief. This couple decided to fight Woods in the High Court and won.
It was to be the beginning of her the downfall and led to serious questions about her credibility. It was to lead to one of the fastest pieces of legislation ever to go through the Dail. The children had been taken into the care of the Eastern Health Board on a Fit Persons Order. The High Court took the view that a Fit Persons Order was meant to be governor or governess of an orphanage in the 19th century. And the Eastern Health Board was a corporate body and not a person. The children were being held illegally. This meant any child (there was believed to be between three and four hundred at the time been held on a Fit Persons Order) were also been held illegally. Any parent, therefore, could go and take a child back. Legislation had to be rushed in. Alan Shatter, shadow Minister of Justice, said the opposition would not oppose this legislation as it was brought about because of the overzealousness of a certain female doctor working out of a hospital in central Dublin.
Eventually a lot of the victims concerned organised themselves into an action group. They made serious allegations in the most detailed of ways and eventually forced the powers that be - the Medical Council and the hospital involved to take action. As more cases came to the notice of the courts Woods credibility began to sink further. It took the authorities a very long time to hold a proper inquiry and even then only because of the pressure put on them. The Eastern Health Board insisted that it be conducted in private behind closed doors. The excuse for this was to protect children who would be coming forward as witnesses. At this stage the children were adults and were prepared to have the case heard in public. In any event the case was held in private. Out of the five case three were proven against Woods and the other two were inconclusive. Yet, they did not strike her off the medical register. She was given an opportunity to be retrained, which she refused. By that stage she was in her 70s and didn't need an income.
Some of the families got compensation but by this time Woods had accumulated all the wealth she had in Ireland and had moved to Tuscany in Italy where she was to live another 27 years. She clearly put all the money out of the reach of the families as they might have pursued her for damages.
Never once did she acknowledge the harm she done and the hurt that she caused. She lived a vivacious life in Tuscany found a new love life with some American Italian and came back to Ireland only a few months before her death.
People might wonder why bring all this up now? The answer to that is quite simple: her victims need to be acknowledged. All the tears shed by left groups of Ireland will not wash away the truth and hurt behind the whole saga. It is shameful. The stories and experiences of the victims should not be allowed to be swept under the carpet.
There are lots of families out there that have lived through the brittleness with regards to this woman, They need a voice as well. Someone said she went to Tuscany like an old colonial without acknowledging any harm she done to the natives in a place where she lived for years and got her wealth. It seems she died the same way she was born, a stiff upper lipped old colonial to last.
Eventually a lot of the victims concerned organised themselves into an action group. They made serious allegations in the most detailed of ways and eventually forced the powers that be - the Medical Council and the hospital involved to take action. As more cases came to the notice of the courts Woods credibility began to sink further. It took the authorities a very long time to hold a proper inquiry and even then only because of the pressure put on them. The Eastern Health Board insisted that it be conducted in private behind closed doors. The excuse for this was to protect children who would be coming forward as witnesses. At this stage the children were adults and were prepared to have the case heard in public. In any event the case was held in private. Out of the five case three were proven against Woods and the other two were inconclusive. Yet, they did not strike her off the medical register. She was given an opportunity to be retrained, which she refused. By that stage she was in her 70s and didn't need an income.
Some of the families got compensation but by this time Woods had accumulated all the wealth she had in Ireland and had moved to Tuscany in Italy where she was to live another 27 years. She clearly put all the money out of the reach of the families as they might have pursued her for damages.
Never once did she acknowledge the harm she done and the hurt that she caused. She lived a vivacious life in Tuscany found a new love life with some American Italian and came back to Ireland only a few months before her death.
People might wonder why bring all this up now? The answer to that is quite simple: her victims need to be acknowledged. All the tears shed by left groups of Ireland will not wash away the truth and hurt behind the whole saga. It is shameful. The stories and experiences of the victims should not be allowed to be swept under the carpet.
There are lots of families out there that have lived through the brittleness with regards to this woman, They need a voice as well. Someone said she went to Tuscany like an old colonial without acknowledging any harm she done to the natives in a place where she lived for years and got her wealth. It seems she died the same way she was born, a stiff upper lipped old colonial to last.
The point of this article is not to add to the distress of her family and her many children. It is to give the families of some of her victims an acknowledgement of what they suffered, now she has gone.
🖼 Bill O'Brien is an independent republican.
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