A report into the abuse suffered by thousands of children in state-run institutions across the Irish Republic will be published on Wednesday in the largest investigation of religious orders to date.
The full extent of the emotional, physical and sexual trauma inflicted on youngsters by Catholic nuns and priests will be unveiled almost a decade after the Child Abuse Commission was set up by the government.
Roughly 2,500 men and women who were abused in schools and institutions all over the country gave evidence to the Commission, led by Mr Justice Sean Ryan.
Victims hope the publication of the long-awaited report will finally reveal the truth about the hidden torture they suffered as children.
'Closure'
Maeve Lewis, of support group One in Four, said clients want a well documented acknowledgement of the appalling abuse suffered in the institutions.
"Over 35,000 children from the 1940s onwards were condemned to live under a regime of physical, sexual and emotional abuse and neglect," said Ms Lewis.
"While these institutions no longer exist, people who are now aged from 30 to 80 years live day-by-day with the impact their experiences had on their lives.
"If it is a thorough acknowledgement and documents rigorously what people experienced, then it may bring some closure."
The testimonies of more than 700 witnesses were published in an interim report in 2003.
Hundreds of men and women recalled being beaten on every part of their body with a list of weapons, including leather straps, sticks, farm implements, and even hurling sticks.
Others were sexually abused, some described being gang raped.
More than 100 institutions run by religious orders, including industrial schools, institutions for children with disabilities and ordinary day schools, have been examined by the Commission.
While the names of alleged perpetrators will not be published - except for those already convicted by the court - the inquiry is expected to produce specific findings against a number of facilities.
The Sisters of Mercy and Christian Brothers, which ran the largest number of children's institutions, are among the long list of orders under investigation.
It is estimated the five-volume 2,500 page report cost €70m to produce.
© Press Association