Vatican Report. JT: Say the phrase “church and politics” in the United States, and most people think of abortion. But in Europe, what comes to mind these days is immigration, a topic that is at the …More
Vatican Report.
JT: Say the phrase “church and politics” in the United States, and most people think of abortion. But in Europe, what comes to mind these days is immigration, a topic that is at the forefront of political and cultural debates. Today on the Vatican Report, we will look at what the Vatican is saying about immigration issues, and why its input is not always welcome. I am John Thavis, Catholic News Service Rome bureau chief.
CW: And I am Cindy Wooden. A few days ago, Pope Benedict released his message for the annual World Day for Migrants and Refugees. He warned that in a world where record numbers of people are migrating, their children are often the victims of exploitation, abandonment and violence. Vatican officials who presented the message said the international community has formally agreed that child immigrants have rights to school, health care, and other essential services. But often these rights are not respected by the host country, and the children end up living isolated lives in refugee camps or immigration centers.
JT: And what Vatican officials went on to say is that the reason child migrants are denied their rights often comes down to attitudes of selfishness, racism and xenophobia among local populations. Now, to some political leaders across Europe, those are fighting words. They look at the Vatican as a tiny, privileged state that does not have to deal with boatloads of refugees or clandestine workers. In Italy a few months ago, where the government enacted tough new policies on immigration, this debate came to a head when 70 Africans died of hunger and thirst in a boat off the coast of Sicily. No one came to their assistance.
CW: Right, some church leaders in Italy compared that to public indifference to the Holocaust in Nazi Germany. One Vatican archbishop said that while governments have a right to regulate immigration, all human beings have a right to be rescued and given emergency help. And he pointed out that since 1988, nearly 15,000 migrants have died trying to reach Europe. Some of the more conservative Italian political leaders reacted by saying sarcastically that if the Vatican feels so strongly about it, they should open their own doors to immigrants.
JT: The Vatican has also been a sharp critic of the effort to erect barriers -- physical or otherwise -- to immigrant populations. For example, in 2007, one Vatican cardinal said the plan to construct a 700-mile long fence along the U.S.-Mexican border was "an inhuman project." The Vatican has also pointed out that illegal immigration actually serves the economic interests of host countries by providing hardworking laborers at a cheap price. But these illegal immigrants are typically the least paid and the most open to exploitation.
CW: In November, the Vatican hosted a major conference that focused in part on immigrants in detention. They heard reports from the United States and other countries that showed a mushrooming population of detainees. In some places, church …
JT: Say the phrase “church and politics” in the United States, and most people think of abortion. But in Europe, what comes to mind these days is immigration, a topic that is at the forefront of political and cultural debates. Today on the Vatican Report, we will look at what the Vatican is saying about immigration issues, and why its input is not always welcome. I am John Thavis, Catholic News Service Rome bureau chief.
CW: And I am Cindy Wooden. A few days ago, Pope Benedict released his message for the annual World Day for Migrants and Refugees. He warned that in a world where record numbers of people are migrating, their children are often the victims of exploitation, abandonment and violence. Vatican officials who presented the message said the international community has formally agreed that child immigrants have rights to school, health care, and other essential services. But often these rights are not respected by the host country, and the children end up living isolated lives in refugee camps or immigration centers.
JT: And what Vatican officials went on to say is that the reason child migrants are denied their rights often comes down to attitudes of selfishness, racism and xenophobia among local populations. Now, to some political leaders across Europe, those are fighting words. They look at the Vatican as a tiny, privileged state that does not have to deal with boatloads of refugees or clandestine workers. In Italy a few months ago, where the government enacted tough new policies on immigration, this debate came to a head when 70 Africans died of hunger and thirst in a boat off the coast of Sicily. No one came to their assistance.
CW: Right, some church leaders in Italy compared that to public indifference to the Holocaust in Nazi Germany. One Vatican archbishop said that while governments have a right to regulate immigration, all human beings have a right to be rescued and given emergency help. And he pointed out that since 1988, nearly 15,000 migrants have died trying to reach Europe. Some of the more conservative Italian political leaders reacted by saying sarcastically that if the Vatican feels so strongly about it, they should open their own doors to immigrants.
JT: The Vatican has also been a sharp critic of the effort to erect barriers -- physical or otherwise -- to immigrant populations. For example, in 2007, one Vatican cardinal said the plan to construct a 700-mile long fence along the U.S.-Mexican border was "an inhuman project." The Vatican has also pointed out that illegal immigration actually serves the economic interests of host countries by providing hardworking laborers at a cheap price. But these illegal immigrants are typically the least paid and the most open to exploitation.
CW: In November, the Vatican hosted a major conference that focused in part on immigrants in detention. They heard reports from the United States and other countries that showed a mushrooming population of detainees. In some places, church …