Venezuela’s bishops have delivered a letter to Pope Francis calling their government a dictatorship and including a list of those killed in a crackdown on protesters.
The meeting of the Pope and six bishops representing the country’s episcopate came at the bishops’ request.
Their letter said the political crisis was not a standoff between right and left but a “fight between a government which has turned into a dictatorship, an inward-looking which serves only its own interests, and an entire people which is crying out for freedom and desperately seeking, at the risk of its youngest lives, bread, medicine, security, work and fair elections”.
They said a plan to convene an unelected assembly next month was “dangerous”.
In response Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro said he would ask Pope Francis to persuade opponents to stop “training children” to take part in the protests.
Teenagers in face masks are an increasingly common sight at demonstrations against the far-Left government in the capital, Caracas. At least 67 people killed in the protests since April have been under 18.
“I am going to ask Pope Francis to help us so the opposition end the violence, but more than anything to stop looking for children to involve in violent acts,” Mr Maduro said in a television broadcast.
Thousands of mostly peaceful protesters have taken to the streets in recent weeks, angry at delayed elections and worsening food shortages. Church-mediated talks broke down last year and relations between bishops and the government have become increasingly strained.
South Africa’s leaders have lost legitimacy, say churches
The South African Council of Churches has called for the dissolution of parliament and a new general election.The government “has lost its moral legitimacy” and a new election is necessary, the South African Council of Churches said in a statement. The Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference is a member of the council.
The statement follows the council’s own investigation into severe corruption in government. In April 2016, it set up an “unburdening panel” for anyone who had participated in or knew of corrupt activities.
The panel’s report reveals an elite group “that parcels out contracts and other opportunities for their circles against the interests of good governance and against the common good of the South African citizenry”, the statement said.
Members of parliament displayed “complete moral bankruptcy in the execution of their responsibilities in upholding the laws of the land,” it said.
General elections were needed “to secure a fresh mandate based on acceptable values and on integrity.”
South Africa’s next elections are due in 2019.
Tortured priest appeals for aid
A priest who was kidnapped and tortured by Islamists has called for urgent donations to help save Christianity in the Middle East.Fr Douglas Bazi made his appeal in a video that is part of a Knights of Columbus campaign to raise money for the Chaldean archdiocese of Erbil and other groups working to help displaced Christians. More information can be found at ChristiansAtRisk.org.
