YouSaid · the spoken record

Archbishop Auza

lines on the record: 267
first: 2014-10-21
most recent: 2019-10-28
sittings or episodes: 44
sources: un-security-council

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“The priority of the diplomatic activity of the Holy See in the Great Lakes region and elsewhere is preventive action geared towards safeguarding the inviolable dignity of every human person, protecting fundamental human rights, promoting education and health care for all, and fostering the identity of peoples. The grave problem of the recruitment of youth and children by armed groups and terrorist organizations must be made to decisively contrast with investments in both education and job opportunities that offer the young hope for a better future.”
2016-03-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7653 (2016) · source
“The region has been destabilized by the vast proliferation of arms and armed groups fighting in the territory. These groups must be persuaded to disarm and commit themselves to cooperating in the development of their respective countries. The international community must assume a larger role in programmes aimed at controlling the legal and illegal arms trade. The Holy See expresses deep appreciation for the countries that have already committed themselves to this path. A greater investment in preventive diplomacy must accompany all efforts.”
2016-03-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7653 (2016) · source
“The international community must support the countries of the region in preventing the abundant natural resources from becoming a curse instead of a blessing, from being exploited in favour of a privileged few instead of remaining the common good of all. It is no doubt superfluous to underline the capital importance of honest administration on the part of public authorities. Stable and legitimate Governments require electoral processes that are free, credible, inclusive and transparent in order to discourage the recourse to arms. Governments and all stakeholders in the region must be helped to negotiate and deal with the various issues at stake in the most impartial way possible, having in mind only the common good of all citizens.”
2016-03-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7653 (2016) · source
“However, translating the fundamental value of unity in diversity into reality is a constant challenge that demands creativity, generosity, self-sacrifice and respect for others. With respect to dignity, mutual respect and solidarity are possible only if everyone recognizes the inherent and equal dignity of all. Finally, with respect to labour, decent work for all would greatly improve the lives of those in the region. Addressing the Central Africans in Bangui, Pope Francis exhorted all the countries of the region to improve themselves by wisely exploiting the natural resources that make the region one of the two lungs of humankind on account of its exceptionally rich biodiversity.”
2016-03-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7653 (2016) · source
“My delegation believes that the three values of unity, dignity and work are pillars of any prosperous society and thus could greatly facilitate solutions to the complex of causes of armed conflicts and underdevelopment in the region. No solutions to the region's many problems will be possible if there are divisions instead of unity, grave violations of human rights instead of respect for the dignity of each person, and extreme poverty instead of dignified work for all. Unity is a cardinal value for the harmony of peoples in all their diversity. It drives away the fear of the other tribes and communities. It recognizes the plurality of political views and religious beliefs. It eschews the corruption and greed that endanger justice and solidarity.”
2016-03-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7653 (2016) · source
“The Holy See commends the presidency of Angola for bringing the subject of the prevention and resolution of conflicts in the African Great Lakes region to the attention of the international community. Pope Francis, during his visit to the Great Lakes region last November, found inspiration in the motto of the Central African Republic that exults the values of unity, dignity and work. The Pope sees in this triad an expression of the aspirations of each Central African country, and indeed of each of the inhabitants of the Great Lakes region. The region continues to suffer from decades of multiple local and regional conflicts fuelled by, among other things, political instability and poor governance, corruption and extreme poverty, ethnic divisions and the exploitative use of the abundant natural resources.”
2016-03-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7653 (2016) · source
“They are consolidated through thousands of daily actions that are the building blocks of just and peaceful societies. They are realized when both leaders and citizens transcend selfish interests for the common good, reject a spirit of vengeance and take the high road of healing and reconciliation. Those elements underpin every effort towards achieving sustainable development, durable peace and societies that are more respectful of human rights. Without them, military interventions and peacekeeping missions alone will not solve the root causes of conflict.”
2015-11-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7561 (2015) · source
“Their strengths lie neither in material resources nor in scientific expertise nor in political power, but in their being locally rooted enablers of individuals and societies, and in their capacity to produce and nurture leaders who are able to inspire concrete action, develop a rapport of immediacy with individuals and communities, and rally people to work together for something greater than themselves. However, they can also become major obstacles to peace if they show partiality or indeed become parties to the conflict. Conflict prevention and peacebuilding are not as dramatic and urgent as winding up active conflicts, but they do require even greater attention, commitment and sometimes more resources than ending wars and civil strife does. They require perseverance, long-term vision and commitment.”
2015-11-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7561 (2015) · source
“By the same token, resources spent on peacekeeping operations should be shifted to development projects as soon as possible, once situations start to stabilize. Even though the Security Council's objective is not development per se, it could help to mobilize resources for development as a key component of its peace and security objectives. The Holy See wishes to underline the important role that grass-roots movements, faith-based organizations and local communities play in the prevention of conflict and in peacebuilding. Without their support it would be very hard for the international community to build peace and end conflicts.”
2015-11-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7561 (2015) · source
“The recognition of that fact at the level of principle must be translated on the ground into a common approach to building peace, sustaining development and fostering human rights. To avoid fragmentation, the insight that development, peace and security and human rights frequently overlap and coincide must find concrete expression in the manner in which the various United Nations bodies and agencies operate on the ground. Official development assistance figures and peacekeeping budgets show how conflicts are not just an intolerable burden for people, but also an enormous strain for the international community, including financially speaking. Development projects that could help to prevent conflicts must come first, as they could substantially lessen future expenses in peacekeeping operations.”
2015-11-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7561 (2015) · source
“Member States have just adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with its Sustainable Development Goals, thereby expressing their determination "to foster peaceful, just and inclusive societies which are free from fear and violence. There can be no sustainable development without peace and no peace without sustainable development" (General Assembly resolution 70/1, p. 2). That consensus decision must be translated into reality ifwe are to succeed in sparing present and future generations from the scourge ofviolence and in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Evaluations of the Millennium Development Goals show that countries in conflict have lagged far behind in achieving those Goals and, indeed, many have retrogressed, thereby amply demonstrating that development can thrive only in the context of peaceful societies.”
2015-11-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7561 (2015) · source
“Archbishop Auza: At the very outset, my delegation expresses its profound sympathy for all the victims of the terrorist attacks in Paris, Beirut and elsewhere. Our hearts and prayers go out to all those who mourn. Pope Francis, in his address to the General Assembly of the United Nations on 25 September, affirmed: "War is the negation of all rights and a dramatic assault on the environment. If we want true integral human development for all, we must work tirelessly to avoid war between nations and between peoples." (A/70/PV3, p. 5) United Nations affirmations that development, peace and security and human rights are intimately connected and mutually reinforcing abound, making that link one of the guiding principles for peacebuilding and peacekeeping.”
2015-11-17 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7561 (2015) · source
“Women make specific, and at times decisive, contributions that are necessary in such critical areas as helping to foster good relations with local communities and building trust among parties in conflict - elements that are essential to the success of any diplomatic effort and conflict resolution. The role of women in peace and security should not be considered as an afterthought or simply as something politically correct. It is an essential contribution to all our efforts to spare our world from further scourges of war and violence.”
2015-10-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7533 (2015) · source
“They promote programmes aimed at preventing such violence and ensuring women's dignity and effective role in society by promoting pacification and reconciliation, while at the same time addressing the deeper causes of violence against women and girls. They run special programmes designed to fight the stigmatization of victims of sexual violence and to reintegrate them into their families and local communities. Concerning the efforts to implement resolution 1325 (2000), my delegation strongly objects to the suggestion that recovery and rehabilitation measures include abortion. There is no doubt that much still has to be done. My delegation encourages the United Nations and its Member States to recruit more women for preventive diplomacy, mediation efforts, peacekeeping missions and peacebuilding processes.”
2015-10-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7533 (2015) · source
“Such attacks have long-term, even lifelong, traumatic effects on women and girls, both physically and psychologically, and in many cases the victims of sexual violence are excluded from or heavily stigmatized in their families and communities. Such crimes also have a detrimental effect on younger generations, since women are most often the primary educators, caregivers and breadwinners. Such realities are harrowing. As Pope Francis said in his address to the General Assembly on 25 September, they "should serve as an urgent call to those charged with the conduct of international affairs to examine their consciences" (see A/70/PV.3, page 5). Catholic organizations and agencies rapidly and effectively respond to needs arising from violence directed at women and girls in many areas of conflict.”
2015-10-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7533 (2015) · source
“Violent extremism and terrorism in many parts of the world, particularly the Middle East and parts of Africa, have brought violence to new levels of savagery against civilians and cultural and religious patrimonies. Women and girls are caught up in such conflict situations and subjected to rape, sexual assault, torture, human trafficking, forced marriages and forced religious conversions. They are bought and sold and even given as gifts or trophies to terrorist fighters. My delegation is particularly appalled by acts of sexual violence used as a strategy of war and designed to dehumanize and demoralize women, girls and their families.”
2015-10-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7533 (2015) · source
“Archbishop Auza: My delegation would like to congratulate Spain on its presidency of the Security Council this month and its convening ofthis particularly important open debate and high-level review of resolution 1325 (2000). The resolution was historic in its aim to highlight for the first time the links between women, armed conflict and peace and security. It also recognized that women and children are affected by armed conflict in differentiated and more adverse ways, and that women play a crucial role in maintaining and promoting peace and security. In the light of the number, intensity and changing nature of current conflicts, the high-level review and global study we are discussing are very relevant.”
2015-10-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7533 (2015) · source
“The Holy See therefore exhorts the international community and the Council, in particular, to engage in more vigorous diplomacy in order to put an end to all the situations of violence that rob so many children of their present and future. The protection of children is a serious moral and legal obligation. To protect children in armed conflict from all forms of violence is to protect our future.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“In areas of armed conflict, we have noted that faith communities have demonstrated that they are an essential element in the recovery and reintegration of child victims into normal life. In addition, faith communities are a key part of an early-warning system for preventing abductions. Horrendous as they are, the crimes committed against children in armed conflict are but one manifestation of a violent world. We must combat all forms of violence, especially those that breed crimes against children in armed conflict, and we must not cease to foster an education that promotes peaceful and harmonious co-existence among peoples.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“I would like to assure the Council that the Holy See and the Catholic Church, in general, have been and continue to be actively engaged in providing specialized support to child victims, including many forms of trauma-healing services and reconciliation with families. I wish to mention, in particular, the Saint Monica's Centre in Gulu, Uganda, which has dedicated itself for many years to the rehabilitation of child Victims of the Lord's Resistance Army; there are many similar institutions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well. Numerous initiatives have been launched to raise public awareness of this plague and help child victims reunite with their families.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“Thirdly, the care and rehabilitation of children who have been rescued from armed groups must be backed by adequate and long-term resources in order to ensure as far as is possible the children's successful reintegration into their families and into society and that they do not remain hostages to the horrors they have survived. Fourthly, putting an end to impunity must be a key part of the healing process, as well as a deterrent for future potential perpetrators. Fifthly, the prohibition against using schools, hospitals and other institutions for children for military purposes and armed attacks must be strictly implemented and those practices condemned in the strongest possible terms. The Holy See is therefore pleased that that too is strongly stated in the resolution adopted today.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“Accordingly, the Council should consider expanding resolution 1612 (2005) to include abduction as an additional issue to be specifically monitored in peacekeeping operations. Secondly, considering the increase in the number of cases of abduction, the Holy See notes with satisfaction that in accordance with the resolution adopted today, the Security Council requests the Secretary-General to include, in the annexes to his annual report on children and armed conflict, those parties to conflicts that engage in the abduction of children.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“However, the gap between legislation and implementation remains very wide and the emergence ofnew challenges requires new tools. My delegation therefore believes that we must strengthen our response to the crime of abduction and its trail of further crimes against children in armed conflict. We believe the Council can and must do still more. My delegation has prepared a five-point recommendation for consideration, and we are pleased that several of its points are already contained in resolution 2225 (2015), which has just been adopted. First, specific child-protection commitments aimed at the rapid release of children from armed forces and armed groups should be incorporated into peacebuilding efforts.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“It is very important to highlight the issue of the abduction of children in armed conflict, because it is often the gateway to more serious abuses against children and graver violations of international humanitarian law. The 24 April 2014 abduction of 276 schoolgirls by Boko Haram exemplifies the horrors of that specific crime and highlights the added challenges involved in bringing non-State armed and terrorist groups to justice and into compliance with national and international human-rights laws, especially as they relate to child-protection obligations. There has been progress in combating violence against children in armed conflict. The "Children, Not Soldiers" campaign has strengthened the commitment of the Governments concerned. The Council has focused its efforts and resources on that question on numerous occasions.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“The year 2014 has been proclaimed the worst ever for children affected by armed conflict. An estimated 230 million children currently live in areas affected by such conflicts, and new levels of violence have been inflicted on them through their use as suicide bombers and human shields. The Secretary-General's annual report (S/2015/409) on children and armed conflict provides a horror list of the forms of Violence to which children were subjected in 2014: they were killed, maimed, abducted, enslaved, recruited as soldiers, displaced, trafficked and sexually abused. We can safely affirm that never in recent memory have so many children been subjected to such brutality.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“At the outset, my delegation wishes to congratulate Malaysia on its presidency of the Council this month and in particular for scheduling this debate on children and armed conflict. One of the saddest developments in the evolution of armed conflict is that increasing numbers of victims are civilians. In the early 1900s, approximately 5 per cent of fatalities were civilians, whereas in the 19905 the percentage was over 90, including a large children. While a disproportionate number of children are killed and injured in conflicts, countless others grow up with their material and emotional needs unmet. The entire fabric of life and society is torn, as homes, schools, health systems and religious institutions are no longer safe from attacks and military operations. Indeed, those institutions have become frequent targets in armed conflicts.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“My delegation salutes those who put their lives on the line so that the cries of those trapped in conflict situations can be heard and the voices of those longing for peace can find an echo. May the appreciation we have for journalists' valuable work translate itself into greater efforts to protect them better in armed conflicts. Above all, let us all work together to banish wars and conflicts, so that no one may ever have to risk life and limb.”
2015-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7450Resumption1 (2015) · source
“To that end, the international community can play an important role in providing technical and financial assistance for needy countries to improve policies both to protect journalists and to address violations of already existing rules for their rights and protection. Media organizations also have responsibilities in ensuring the safety of their journalists. Journalists themselves should exercise tact, especially in situations in which the duty to objective reporting seems to collide with respect for the cultural values and religious beliefs of peoples involved in the conflict. While lack of objective information is a disservice to the truth, could put lives at risk and misguide policymakers and the public in general, lack of respect for cultural values and religious beliefs could only exacerbate the conflict.”
2015-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7450Resumption1 (2015) · source
“The protection of journalists in conflict situation gains more urgency in the context of the new challenges that today's conflict situations present. My delegation believes it is relevant to re-examine the current rights and protections of journalists in conflict situations, to see if they are still adequate, or whether more specific protection measures for journalists are needed - in as much that they are a special category of civilians - particularly in the context of conflicts perpetrated by non-State actors. While it is the duty of Governments to ensure that the measures already in place to protect journalists are fully applied, more often than not, in conflict situations State institutions break down or are impeded. Indeed, conflicts are frequently symptoms of deeper problems, including the weakness of State institutions themselves.”
2015-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7450Resumption1 (2015) · source
“Here lies the fundamental importance of journalists dedicated to truth and to the promotion of the common good. Here lies, as well, the grave danger that a party or parties in conflict would specifically target journalists faithful to their duty of objective reporting. Today's debate has highlighted a number of tools already at the disposal of the international community. The Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols grant protection for journalists and civilians in conflict settings. However, military protection policies andjudicial accountability mechanisms remain insufficient, and in many places are non-existent. It is in fact unacceptable that only fewer than than 5 per cent of the cases of murders ofjournalists end in the prosecution of the perpetrators.”
2015-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7450Resumption1 (2015) · source
“In promoting access to and providing information, dedicatedjournalistsinconflictsettingsprovidealifeline to those trapped behind combat lines or caught up in the crossfire. They also offer policymakers - including the Security Council - the information necessary to make informed and responsible decisions on how to end conflicts and assist those affected by them. My delegation deplores the fact that hundreds of journalists were killed over the past decade. While danger is sadly a constant feature of life in conflict situations, there is no excuse for parties in conflict not to respect and protect journalists. Parties in conflict are obviously not always reliable sources of objective information. The exigencies of, and the need to justify, military operations often trump the right to objectivity in information.”
2015-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7450Resumption1 (2015) · source
“Archbishop Auza: I would like to thank Lithuania for organizing this important debate and to express my delegation's appreciation for Lithuania's presidency this month. At the outset, the Holy See offers prayers for the journalists who have lost their lives in the faithful exercise of their profession, and expresses solidarity and sympathies to their families. Let us acknowledge their tremendous contribution to our world. Society has a right to objective information, and it is through the observance of this exigency that the media are at the service of the common good. The role of journalists in providing information is among the principal instruments of democratic participation.”
2015-05-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7450Resumption1 (2015) · source
“As Pope Francis emphasized during his visit to Albania on 21 September 2014, no one should consider oneself "to be the 'armour' of God while planning and carrying out acts of violence and oppression".”
2015-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7432 (2015) · source
“Achieving social justice is therefore key to countering the phenomenon of young people joining extremist organizations. In our fight against extremist ideologies and our efforts to promote a culture of peace, young people themselves are a most precious resource. We can counter extremist recruiters by promoting voices that are trusted and respected among their peers on the very platforms they use to recruit new members, like the social media. Finally, faith leaders and organizations must condemn messages of hate in the name of religion and provide young people with religious education that fosters understanding and respect between peoples of different faiths. People of faith have a grave responsibility to condemn those who seek to detach faith from reason and who instrumentalize faith as a justification for Violence.”
2015-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7432 (2015) · source
“Policies and education that seek to minimize or eliminate the faith component of individual and collective identities could leave the young disoriented, alienated, marginalized or excluded and prone to the message of extremist groups. There is no doubt that the catchwords and slogans used by extremist groups to recruit young people often involve distorted religious and sociocultural values. Unemployment and despair also lie behind the vulnerability of many young people to the propaganda and manipulations of extremist recruiters. Idle minds and hands are highly vulnerable to extremist ideologies. Thus, global economic inequalities and the marginalization and exclusion from development to which they lead are not only a grave social and economic concern but can become a threat to international peace and security.”
2015-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7432 (2015) · source
“Failure to bring the problem to public discussion may imply disinterest on the part of States, fear or both, while encouraging debate will ordinarily promote collective confidence and deeper mutual understanding among the various ethnic, racial and religious components of society. This dialogue can lead to the formulation of Government policies of which all members of a society can claim collective ownership and offer young people convincing counter-narratives to extremist propaganda. Indeed, balanced public policy plays a key role in facilitating solid integration of immigrants in society as citizens. Policies that discourage xenophobic or racist perceptions are much needed because they contribute to the observance of healthy religious and sociocultural values. Religion constitutes a potent part of these value systems.”
2015-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7432 (2015) · source
“If States really want to reach young people before they are exposed to extremist ideologies, they should render appropriate assistance to parents in the performance of their child-rearing responsibilities, according to the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Studies and events show that some Governments tend to avoid frank and constructive conversations on the question of radicalization. Hiding the problem, however, is counterproductive. Fostering public debate, on the other hand, can encourage young people to vent their frustrations before they succumb to extremist ideologies and can assist the State to articulate policies accordingly.”
2015-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7432 (2015) · source
“Today's debate allows us to examine more in depth how these harmful messages are finding new audiences and how States can work together to face the challenge. The phenomenon of young people responding to the recruitment of those inciting them to engage in violent extremism develops within a context of disillusionment and missed opportunities, ofsociocultural identity crisis and failed integration, of alienation and dissatisfaction, of intergenerational break-ups and broken families. A fundamental step in addressing the radicalization of young people is to work with and support the family in its efforts to educate children and young people in the values of dialogue and respect for others, to make them better equipped to resist what appear at first as attractive calls to a higher cause and to adventure with extremist groups.”
2015-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7432 (2015) · source
“At the outset, let me congratulate Jordan for its presidency during this month, and in particular for scheduling this debate on the role of young people in countering Violent extremism and promoting peace. The ever-increasing globalization and technological interconnectedness have brought many benefits to our world today, but they have also created new and emerging challenges. Young people around the world can use the Internet and social media to enter into contact, make friends and learn about the great cultures and traditions of other people in every corner of the world. Unfortunately, those great technological advances can also be manipulated to spread messages of hate and violence.”
2015-04-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7432 (2015) · source
“When we call to mind those who have already lost their lives or those who have already been driven out of their homes, and even out of their own countries, any action would already be coming too late. But from now on, every action to spare even just one person from persecution and from all forms of atrocities is not only timely, but most urgent. Pope Francis calls on the international community not to remain mute and inert before such an unacceptable crime and not turn a blind eye to this. To watch in complicit silence the horrors of our fellow human beings persecuted, exiled, killed, burned or beheaded solely because they hold a different religious creed or they happen to belong to a minority group can never be an option.”
2015-04-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7430 (2015) · source
“Once again, it wishes to point out that the disappearance of ethnic and religious minority groups from the Middle East would not only be a religious tragedy, but a loss of a rich patrimony that has contributed so much to the societies to which they belong. That those groups are threatened with extinction causes unfathomable anguish and pain. Last month at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, 65 countries signed a statement supporting the human rights of Christians and other communities, particularly in the Middle East. That statement calls attention to the fact that the instability and conflict in the Middle East seriously threaten the very existence of many religious communities, especially Christians. It calls on all States to join together and address this alarming situation.”
2015-04-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7430 (2015) · source
“The fall of Idlib, just 37 miles south-west of Aleppo, has sown panic among Aleppo's population of more than 1 million people. The ethnic and religious minority groups are particularly anguished. The Holy See calls on the international community to prevent the enormous humanitarian disaster that a siege on, and battle over, Aleppo will surely provoke. We must do all we can to prevent yet another gross violation of international humanitarian law and of fundamental human rights. The Holy See reiterates its condemnation in the strongest terms of all attacks and abuses based on ethnic, religious, racial or other grounds.”
2015-04-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7430 (2015) · source
“That institutional void makes the nation more vulnerable and fragile in the face of the overall situation in the Middle East. The international community must support Lebanon in every way to regain institutional normalcy and stability. It must also help it care for the huge number of refugees in its territory, which has created a situation that carries the danger of extremist infiltration among the hapless refugees. The conflict in Syria, as Baroness Valerie Amos defined it in her Security Council briefing last 26 March (see S/PV.7418), has reached breathtaking levels of savagery. The indiscriminate destruction of basic infrastructure, such as water and electricity facilities, hospitals and schools, worsens the plight ofcivilians each passing day.”
2015-04-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7430 (2015) · source
“However, the Holy See believes that such security will come not in isolation from its neighbours, but in taking its place with them through a negotiated peace with the Palestinians through the implementation of the two- State solution, which has the support of the Holy See and of the international community in general. The Holy See joins its voice once more with all the people ofpeace in calling for serious and concrete negotiations that will reinvigorate the peace process. The Holy See does not cease to encourage the leaders of Lebanon to resolve the impasse that has prevented the election of a President since May 2014 by putting aside narrow political interests for the sake of the greater good ofa unified Lebanon.”
2015-04-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7430 (2015) · source
“Archbishop Auza: Mr. President, my delegation wishes to express its profound appreciation for the decision of Jordan's presidency this month to hold this open debate on the Middle East, including the Palestinian question. The Holy See is deeply concerned about the total lack of progress in the negotiations between Palestine and Israel. It is difficult not to share the frustration expressed by the then United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Mr. Robert Serry, during his last Security Council briefing, on 27 March (see S/PV.7417). As was recognized on that occasion, Israel has genuine and legitimate concerns for its security.”
2015-04-21 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7430 (2015) · source
“The Holy See avails itself of this opportunity to convey its deep appreciation to the countries in the region and to all those who work tirelessly, even risking their lives, to provide assistance to some 2.5 million internally displaced persons in Iraq, to 12 million Syrians in need of humanitarian assistance, of whom 4 million are living as refugees and 7.5 million are internally displaced. Let us help these neighbourly countries as they care for and welcome the refugees. Delayed action will mean only that more people will die, or be displaced or persecuted. Pope Francis exhorts us all to join our efforts to support a Middle East that will continue to be a welcoming home for all of its ethnic and religious groups.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“As Pope Benedict XVI underlined in his address to the General Assembly in 2008 (see A/62/PV.95), the responsibility to protect is not a novel creation in international law, but rather is rooted in the ancient ins gentium 4 the law of peoples - as the foundation of every action taken by those in Government with regard to the governed. Building on that ancient tradition and its reiterations in international humanitarian law and in today's United Nations forums, Pope Francis has repeatedly called upon the international community to do all that it can to stop and to prevent further systematic violence against ethnic and religious minorities.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“In 2005 at the World Summit, the entire international community agreed that every State has the primary responsibility to protect its populations from genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing and related incitement. Moreover, the international community recognizes its responsibility to assist States in fulfilling their primary responsibility. However, when a State is unable or unwilling to uphold that primary responsibility, the international community must be prepared to take action to protect populations in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“Thus, it pains us deeply that the ancient Christian communities in the region - many of which still speak Aramaic, the language of Jesus Christ - are among those threatened with extinction. Their uninterrupted existence in the region is testimony to many centuries of coexistence, side by side, with Muslims and other religious and ethnic communities. Those communities are an integral part of the cultural and religious identity of the Middle East, thus their disappearance from there would not only be a religious tragedy, but the loss of a rich cultural and religious patrimony that contributes so much to the societies to which they belong and which the whole world has much interest in preserving. The Holy See therefore calls on all of the leaders and people of goodwill in the region and throughout the world to act before it is too late.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“Faced with the unbearable situation of living in a conflict zone controlled by terrorist and extremist organizations that constantly threaten them with death, and with a deep sense of feeling abandoned to their fate by the legitimate authorities and the international community, entire communities of Christians, especially from northern Iraq, have been brutally forced to flee their homes and have sought refuge in the Kurdistan region of Iraq and in the neighbouring countries of the region. The Holy See expresses profound gratitude to countries and leaders in the region that have openly defend the Christians as an integral part of the religious, historical and cultural fabric of the region. For 2,000 years, Christians have called the Middle East home; indeed, as we know, the Middle East is the cradle of Christianity.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source