The Church and Human Rights: An Address by Archbishop Mamberti at the United Nations
Archbishop Mamberti, the secretary for the Vatican’s relations with states, in addressing the 62nd session of the U.N. stated:
“Many
of the problems that today are attributed almost exclusively to
cultural and religious differences have their origin in economic and
social injustices." He went on to call for a fully operational
peacekeeping force in Darfur, Sudan and for a solution for the conflict
between Israelis and Palestinians which is capable of recognizing the
legitimate expectations of each side. Referring to the crisis in Myanmar
he noted that Pope Benedict's appeal called for “dialogue, good will
and a spirit of humanity. May a solution be found quickly for the good
of the country and a better future for all its inhabitants?”
Archbishop
Mamberti went on to assert the inherent right to life is to be
respected everywhere. He said that we must work to stop and reverse the
culture of death embraced by some social and legal structures that try
to make the suppression of life acceptable by disguising it as a medical
or social service. In this sense, the abolition of the death penalty
should also be seen as a consequence of full respect for the right to
life.
On the issue of equality, he noted that “the quest for
equality between men and women has achieved positive results.
Nevertheless, inequalities in the exercise of basic human rights
unfortunately persists in many places. This leads to a breakdown in the
social fabric and results in women’s objectification and exploitation.
The vindication of equality needs to be accompanied by the awareness
that it goes hand in hand with and does not endanger, much less
contradict, the recognition of both the difference and complementarity
between men and women.”
He concluded that “Faith in human dignity
demands that the problem of migrations is approached in the context of
human rights, family rights, and children’s rights.” He said that “while
it is essential to fight human trafficking and it is legitimate to curb
illegal migration, no one can justify measures which put lives at risk
or gravely offend human dignity and rights.”
Terry McCaffrey, Parish Human Concerns Committee, December 2007. From the October 25th 2007 edition of Origins Magazine.