A denunciation of the unjust and precarious living conditions of seafarers and an exhortation to accompany and help them is made by Bishop Luis Quinteiro, Episcopal delegate for the apostolate of the sea, in his message on the occasion of the feast of the Virgin of Carmen, which falls on 16 July, and on which the Day devoted to the pastoral care of seamen is also to be celebrated. Recently the bishop issued a statement following the tragedy of the foundering of the vessel “O Bahia” off the coast of Galizia. “There are many people for whom the sea is the only means of subsistence and from this harsh place of work they contribute to the well-being of society writes Msgr. Quinteiro -. Yet, in spite of this, every day they find themselves involved in a series of problems for which we must find more effective answers. The long periods spent on board imply a series of difficulties not easily overcome: absence, loneliness, fear, insecurity, problems of living together with others, routine…difficulties that are often accompanied by precariousness in earnings, lack of identity, problems of adapting to normal activities in the city in which their residence is fixed…”. The theme of the celebration this year is “the sea unites us and makes us brothers”.
