On the occasion of his Easter message on Sunday, in an empty St. Peter's Basilica, Pope Francis addressed his thoughts "to all those who were struck directly by the coronavirus", to "the sick, those who died and to families ”.
"Let these weaker brothers and sisters, who populate the cities and the peripheries of all the parts of the world, not be left alone", exhorted the sovereign pontiff, addressing a particular thought for the "old people and the single people" , "Doctors and nurses", "law enforcement and the military", all those "who work in nursing homes", or "who live in barracks and prisons".
Canceling the debt of poor countries
The pope also expressed his wish “that international sanctions which prevent countries which are the object of it from providing adequate support to their citizens be released” and called for international solidarity “by reducing, if not squarely by canceling, the debt that weighs on the budgets of the poorest countries ”. François also repeated his call for "a global and immediate cease-fire in all regions of the world".
"This is not the time to continue manufacturing and trafficking weapons, spending huge capital that should be used to heal people and save lives," he said in the message from the spiritual leader of 1.3 billion Catholics, broadcast live worldwide. The pope notably mentioned Yemen and Syria, but also Iraq, Lebanon, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, eastern Ukraine, "the terrorist attacks perpetrated against so many innocent people" in Africa, the drama of migrants and the humanitarian situation in northern Mozambique. He also hoped that "concrete and immediate solutions" will be found in Venezuela, "to grant international aid to the population".
A spirit of solidarity in Europe
He chose to launch a specific appeal to Europe which must rediscover "a concrete spirit of solidarity which enabled it to overcome the rivalries of the past", especially after the Second World War. Faced with the global pandemic that is hitting countries like Italy, Spain and France hard, we must have recourse to "innovative solutions" and forget "selfishness".
Even if it agreed on a fund of 500 billion euros, the European Union appeared divided on the response to the economic consequences of the pandemic. The southern countries, behind Italy and Spain, wish to set up a debt pooling system that the north refuses, notably Germany and the Netherlands.
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