About migrants “Italy, this government, can do nothing without an agreement with Europe, the responsibility lies with Europe”. On the flight that took him from Bahrain back to Rome, Pope Francis answered the questions of the usual high-altitude press conference. The main theme was migrants, while in the port of Catania the procedures for disembarking women and children from the ship Geo Barents (Doctors Without Borders) began. “It’s a challenge – stressed Bergoglio – it’s a challenge. The following principle applies to migrants: migrants must be welcomed, accompanied, supported and integrated, if these four steps do not work, working with migrants cannot be good. Welcomed, accompanied, encouraged and integrated, arrived at the point of integration. And second I say: Every EU government has to agree on how many migrants it can take in. On the contrary, there are four countries that receive migrants: Cyprus, Greece, Italy and Spain, which are closest to the Mediterranean Sea, inland there are some, like Poland, Belarus … but speaking of the large migrants that Sea: Life must be saved. Do you know today that the Mediterranean is a graveyard? Perhaps the largest cemetery in the world”.
Francis also reiterated that “the policy of migrants must be agreed between all countries, a policy cannot be carried out without consent, and the European Union must adopt a policy of cooperation and assistance that it cannot leave Cyprus, Greece, Italy and Spain, the responsibility of all migrants arriving on the beaches. The policy of the governments so far has been to save lives, that’s true. To a point this has been done and I believe that this Italian government is following the same policy… I don’t know the details but I don’t think they want to go away but I believe they’ve already landed the children , the mothers, the sick, as far as I have heard, at least the intention was there”.
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Migrants, the first disembarkations of the ship Geo Barents in the port of Catania: women, children and minors disembark
“I would like to mention – added Bergoglio – another European responsibility for Africa, I believe that this was said by one of the great women statesmen that we had and have, Merkel, who said that the problem of migrants in Africa will be solved but if we think of Africa with the motto: Africa must be exploited, it is logical that migrants, people, run away from this fruit We must, Europe must try to make development plans for Africa. To think that some countries in Africa are not masters of their own subsoil, which is still dependent on the colonial powers. It is hypocrisy to solve the problem of migrants in Europe, no, let’s solve them at home too. The exploitation of people in Africa is terrible for this idea. On January 1st I had a meeting with university students from Africa. The meeting is the same one I had with Loyola University of the United States. These students have a capacity, an intelligence, a critical ability, a desire to move on, but sometimes they can’t because of the colonial power that Europe has in their governments. If we want to finally solve the migrant problem, we will solve Africa. The migrants coming from other parts are minors, fewer, but we have Africa, we are helping Africa.
The Pope also made a first remark to the executive headed by Giorgia Meloni: “The new government is starting now, I’m here: I wish her the best. I always wish the best for a government because government is there for everyone and I wish him the best so he can move Italy and everyone else who is against the winning party, who is collaborating with criticism, with the aid, but a collaborative government, not a government where they move their faces, they make them They fall off if you don’t like one or the other. Please I call the responsibility for it. Tell me, is it correct that Italy has had 20 governments from the beginning of the century to now? Let’s stop these jokes…”. In the evening, the prime minister replied with a note: “We always listen with great attention to the words of the Holy Father, which are a constant a warning to wisdom and charity. And we want to sincerely thank him for his encouragement and, above all, for his invitation to national and international harmony. The great challenges we face can only be met if we unite the efforts of all men and women of good will.”
The Pope’s words are also important in relation to women’s rights, affirming the recent appointment of the economist Mariana Mazzucato as a full member of the Pontifical Academy for Life. Indeed, the election had provoked numerous criticisms in traditionalist circles, who accused the woman of being an abortionist. Francis also renewed his call for peace in Ukraine: “Three world wars in one century! The one from 1914-1918, the one from 1939-1945 and this one! This is a world war because it is true that when the empires on one side and the other weaken, they have to fight a war to feel strong and also to sell their weapons, eh! Because today I believe that the greatest evil in the world is the armaments industry. Please! They told me, I don’t know if it’s true or not, that if they didn’t make guns for a year, that would end world hunger. The arms industry is terrible.”
See also
Migrants on Humanity, Noury (Amnesty): “Italy risks new penalty for unlawful refoulement like 2012”
Finally, the issue of pedophilia. “The problem of abuse – explained the Pope – has always existed, not only in the Church but everywhere. You know that 42-46% of sexual abuse occurs in the family or in the neighborhood; this is very serious, but it was always the habit to cover, in the family everything is covered even today, and even in the neighborhood they cover everything or at least most cases; an ugly habit that began to change in the church when there was the Boston scandal at the time of Cardinal Law, who resigned over the scandal; it was the first time an abuse case had emerged as a scandal. Since then the Church has been aware of this and has begun to function while normally covering itself in society and other institutions. When there was a meeting of the Presidents of the Episcopal Conferences on this subject, I asked Unicef, the UN, the statistics of this phenomenon, the percentage data: in families, in neighborhoods, in schools, in sports … and a precise one it became a study carried out, which also included the Church; and some say we are a small minority but I say if it were even a single case it would still be tragic because you priests have a vocation to make people grow and by doing so you are destroying them; For a priest, abuse is like going against one’s own priestly nature and contrary to its social nature it is therefore a tragic thing and we must not stop, we must not stop”.
“In this – continued Francis – waking up, investigating and accusations, everything was not always and everywhere the same, some things were hidden before the Boston scandal changed people, moved priests, now everything is clear and we continue point, so should we’re not surprised cases like this come up, now I can think of another case from another bishop, you know? And now it’s not easy to say “we didn’t know” or “it was the culture of the time and it’s still the social culture to hide”. I tell you this: the Church has decided this, and I want to publicly thank the heroism of Cardinal O’Malley, a good Capuchin friar who recognized the need to do this to the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, which he is institutionalize and that is good for everyone and gives us courage. We work – concluded the Pope – with everything we can, but knowing that there are people in the Church who still do not see clearly, do not share … what we are doing is a process and we are leading it with courage and not ahead of everything we have courage; sometimes there is a temptation to compromise and we are also all slaves to our sins, but the will of the Church is to sort everything out”.
Twitter: @FrancescoGrana