The Catholic Church has moved to further allay concerns over ongoing construction work at Belfast’s Milltown Cemetery close to an area containing the unmarked graves of thousands of babies.
A new pathway has been built as part of a project to upgrade walkways and drainage at the historic cemetery, where trustees are undertaking a programme of “maintenance and modernisation” that includes the digitisation of burial records.
However, the proximity of the work close to land containing the remains of unbaptised babies and others including people who took their own lives, sparked worry when it began late last year.
Concerns were raised that the work would disturb the unmarked graves in the land, which had been leased to the Ulster Wildlife Trust in 2000, before being reclaimed by the Catholic Church nine years later following archeological work that identified the location of the remains.
Then-Bishop of Down and Connor Noel Treanor publicly apologised for the land having been sold, and carried out a blessing of the land on that year’s Cemetery Sunday.
It is estimated that the remains of over 11,000 infants and adults are buried in the unmarked grave site, but the church has insisted the ongoing construction work is not disturbing the area.
A spokesperson for the Diocese of Down and Connor said the new pathway “falls outside the defined location of identified burials”.
“This pathway therefore does not run through land containing baby graves,” they said.
“The section of the cemetery where there are baby burials is clearly demarcated...by a hedge boundary set around this burial section.”
They said archeological work undertaken between November and February “was carried out precisely to ensure that there would be no burials in proximity to pathways and drainage”.
“The diocese gives an assurance that no burial sites will be disturbed by these essential works within Milltown Cemetery,” the spokesperson added.
An archeologist whose work identifying the unmarked graves led to the site being reclaimed by the church in 2009 is calling for an end to private status for cemeteries, which she said will protect all graves indefinitely.
Toni Maguire, who has previously called for the work at Milltown to cease, told The Irish News: “If we can remove private status for cemeteries, which is no longer fit for purpose, then we can ensure that all grave sites are fully protected. The idea that in private cemeteries you ‘rent’ a grave plot for around 75 years only is not fair on families.”
In April, Alliance MLA Nuala McAllister called for the work work at Milltown to be halted over concerns relating to the mass burial site.
She revealed her family believes her stillborn brother, along with twins her mother lost during pregnancy, are buried there in unmarked graves.
Ms McAlister brought Toni Maguire and campaigner Siubhainin Ní Chutnneagam - who has relatives buried at the site - to a recent meeting at Stormont with Department for Communities minister Gordon Lyons, to discuss concerns over Milltown and the issue of private cemetery status.
Following the recent launch of a consultation to establish an inquiry into mother-and-baby homes, which will also take in burials and unmarked graves, Ms McAllister said she will be submitting a Private Members Bill proposal “to ensure that private cemeteries are subject to the same regulations as Council-owned cemeteries”.
