“Governments must end the return of migrants to unsafe countries,” said the pontiff after the traditional Angelus prayer.
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“I never forget you, I hear your cries and I pray for you.” Pope Francis called on the international community on Sunday 24 October to tackle the migrant crisis in Libya, after a European summit remained divided on the attitude to adopt in the face of the flow of migrants to Europe. “I express my closeness to the thousands of migrants, refugees and also others who need protection in Libya”, said the Pope after the traditional Angelus prayer in St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican.
“So many of these men, women and children are subjected to inhuman violence”, he continued. “I call once again on the international community to keep its promises to find common, concrete and lasting solutions for the management of migratory flows in Libya and throughout the Mediterranean”, added the 84-year-old Pope. “Governments must end the deportation of migrants to insecure countries.”
He called on governments to give at the same time “the priority to saving lives at sea” with safe disembarkation devices in ports, guaranteeing migrants “decent living conditions, alternatives to detention, regular migration routes and access to asylum procedures”. Italy continues to face the almost daily arrival of hundreds of migrants on its coasts.