During his visit to the French port city of Marseille, Pope Francis made a plea for sea rescue. The Mediterranean has become a graveyard and a “fanaticism of indifference” is unacceptable.
Pope Francis has clearly condemned the deaths of migrants in the Mediterranean. “We are at a crossroads of civilization,” said the head of the Catholic Church during his visit to the southern French port city of Marseille. On the one hand, says Francis, there is a path of fraternity – on the other, there is an indifference that stains the Mediterranean with blood. “Let us not get used to seeing shipwrecks as headlines and deaths at sea as mere numbers,” the Pope appealed.
The Mediterranean has become a huge cemetery where many people are deprived of the right to a grave. “Only human dignity is buried here,” said Francis. The migrants would flee conflict, poverty and environmental disasters. In the waves of the Mediterranean, their search for a better future is finally rejected. The church leader called for action.
Rescuing drowning people as a “duty of civilization”
Human trafficking, torture, shipwrecks and a “fanaticism of indifference” must no longer be accepted, the Pope said, demanding: “People who are in danger of drowning if they are abandoned on the waves must be saved. This is a duty of humanity , a duty of civilization.”
The Pope made the remarks as part of a commemoration for those who drowned in the Mediterranean, which was also attended by representatives of other religions and Christian churches. Hospitality is a root of Judaism, Islam and Christianity, said Francis. Believers must set an example for one another. The religious leaders gathered at a memorial stele near the Basilica of Notre-Dame de la Garde. The monument depicts a cross, an anchor and a heart; the symbols stand for faith, hope and charity.
More than 10,000 migrants landed on the Italian Mediterranean island of Lampedusa alone this month. Fatal incidents also occur again and again. At the start of his trip, the Pope expressed shock at the conditions there. “The situation in Lampedusa is cruel, a terrible lack of humanity.”
60,000 guests expected at the trade fair
On the outbound flight, Francis also spoke to journalists about the situation in Libya, where many migrants are waiting to cross the Mediterranean to Europe. According to a report by the Italian television station RAI, he literally said: “They keep them in camps in Libya and then throw them into the sea.”
Many of the boats that bring people from African countries to Lampedusa for money come from Libya and Tunisia. Migrants often drown during the crossing.
Migration will also be a topic at a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday. 60,000 people are expected at a trade fair in the Velodrome stadium.