|
Francis spoke out in favor of welcoming migrants, in a long
speech that concluded a Church conference on Mediterranean
issues in Marseille, a French port that for centuries has been a
crossroads of cultures and religions.
"There is a cry of pain that resonates most of all, and it is
turning the Mediterranean, the 'mare nostrum', from the cradle
of civilization into the 'mare mortuum', the graveyard of
dignity: it is the stifled cry of migrant brothers and sisters,"
he said, using Latin terms meaning "our sea" and "sea of death".
Francis was welcomed at the windy portside where the conference
centre is located by President Emmanuel Macron, with whom he was
due to have a private meeting later on Saturday before returning
to Rome.
The pope began the day by visiting a centre for the needy in
Marseilles' Saint Mauront district, one of France's poorest, run
by the order of nuns founded by Saint Mother Teresa.
Later at the conference, he called for "an ample number of legal
and regular entrances" of migrants, with emphasis on accepting
those fleeing war, hunger and poverty, rather than on
"preservation of one's own wellbeing".
According to UN Refugee Agency UNHCR, about 178,500 migrants
have come to Europe via the Mediterranean this year, while about
2,500 died or went missing.
Governments in several European countries, including Italy,
Hungary, and Poland, are led by outspoken opponents of
immigration.
Francis called on people to "hear the cries of pain" rising from
North Africa and the Middle East.
"How greatly we need this at the present juncture, when
antiquated and belligerent nationalisms want to make the dream
of the community of nations fade!" he said. He did not name any
countries.
While Francis has said often that migrants should be shared
among the 27 EU countries, his overall openness towards
migrants, including once calling their exclusion "scandalous,
disgusting and sinful," has riled conservative politicians.
His 27-hour trip has been dominated by migration issues. On
Friday, he said migrants who risk drowning at sea "must be
rescued" because doing so was "a duty of humanity" and that
those who impede rescues commit "a gesture of hate".
(Reporting by Philip Pullella; Editing by Peter Graff)
[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2022 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
