<h2 class="p" style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-weight: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif;">
	Justice Minister&nbsp;Alan Shatter&nbsp;has said its important that &quot;lessons might be learned&quot; from the saga in which two Roma children were removed by gardai over doubts about their parentage.</h2>
<div>
	<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif;">
		Mr Shatter has ordered an independent report into the actions of the gardai in both cases, involving a seven-year-old girl from Tallaght, Co Dublin, who cannot be identified and Iancu Muntean (2) from Athlone, Co Westmeath.</p>
	<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif;">
		He said on RTE Radio&#39;s Morning Ireland today the report will examine the &quot;background circumstances&quot; in the cases and &quot;the procedures that were followed&quot;.</p>
	<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif;">
		Procedural changes in any such future cases may have to be implemented, he said.</p>
	<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif;">
		Mr Shatter admitted that concerns over the childrens&#39; parentage were &quot;unfounded&quot;, but he said he had &quot;no doubt that gardai acted in good faith&quot;.</p>
	<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif;">
		&quot;The gardai and the HSE have been criticised in some cases for not acting as speedily as they should... they&#39;re damned if they do and they&#39;re damned if they don&#39;t.&quot;</p>
	<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif;">
		Minister for Children&nbsp;<span style="font-size: 1em;">Frances Fi</span><span style="font-size: 1em;">tzgerald</span>&nbsp;has ordered a separate report from the HSE. The two reports will then be given to the Children&#39;s Ombudsman within two weeks, Mr Shatter said.</p>
	<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif;">
		Meanwhile, the two families at the centre of the contoversy which received international media attention, will be offered any social services assistance they may require in order to cope with the trauma of the last few days, the Minister said.</p>
	<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif;">
		Both children, who were noticed because of their blond hair and blue eyes, are back with their families after the traumatic experience.</p>
	<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif;">
		Siobhan Curran from Pavee Point urged Minister Fitzgerald to launch an independent review into the actions of State authorities, and whether they were &quot;compliant with human rights standards&quot;.</p>
	<div class="more" style="margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; line-height: 12px;">
		<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
			She asked for questions to be addressed like whether 2racial profiling was at play&quot; in the embarrassing episode.</p>
		<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
			Questions also needed to be asked on what evidence the authorities have, why there was &quot;such haste&quot; involved in the removal of the children from their families, and why it was &quot;the first resort and not the second resort&quot;, she said.</p>
		<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
			Ms Curran said the cases are &quot;very damaging&quot; and have created &quot;a fear&quot; in the Roma community that more similar cases will arise.</p>
		<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
			&quot;The Minister needs to take leadership on a review. Our key concern is that it would be independent and that it has to be taken in a timely manner,&quot; Ms Curran added.</p>
		<p style="margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px;">
			<a href="http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/shatter-lessons-might-be-learned-from-roma-child-removals-29696783.html">http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/shatter-lessons-might-be-learned-from-roma-child-removals-29696783.html</a></p>
	</div>
</div>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
