The face of the other

“An immigrant is a human being, different because of his provenance, culture and traditions, but a person to be respected and who has rights and duties, particularly in the context of work where the temptation to exploit is more likely but also in the context of his practical living conditions”. Pope Benedict XVI referred to the events that took place in the town of Rosarno, located in Calabria (southern Italy) during the Angelus of Sunday January 10 where last week several hundreds of illegal non-EU immigrants employed as agricultural labourers, bivouacked in inhuman conditions in the site of an abandoned factory, triggered urban guerrilla in sign of protest after two non-EU migrants were wounded with a buckshot airgun. Violence, said the Holy Father during the Angelus “must never be the way for anyone to solve difficulties. The problem is first and foremost human! I therefore ask people to look at the face of the other and to discover that he has a soul, a history and a life, that he is a person and that God loves this person as much as he loves themself”. The Church in Calabria has always met this appeal, in her commitment for the paupers. Our brothers. “As a bishop it is my duty to thank the Lord for the conduct of the Church of Oppido-Palmi not only in the past days but also during the many years that marked the birth and progress of migration phenomenon in the diocese, especially in Rosarno… The mercy of God practiced by our clergy and laity has been of great comfort during these past sad days”, said Msgr. Luciano Bux, bishop of Oppido-Palmi, in a message that will be read in next Sunday and Saturday Mass”, following the clashes in Rosarno. “We have welcomed the immigrants not on only as human beings but as our very own brothers; starting from the faithful of Rosarno, guided by priests serving in the three dioceses along with the deacons and the nuns, to include communities and groups serving in many other areas of the diocese”. The bishop also addressed the faithful: “Every time you see a human being in need, you must do more than look and talk. You ought to make your utmost efforts to alleviate their suffering”. On January 13 Msgr. Bux met the five migrants who were arrested after the clashes in Rosarno a few days ago. And five lawyers from Palmi’s tribunal, provided by Catholic jurists in the diocese, said they would supply free legal support during the legal proceedings. A sensitive and present church. “I believe that the political, social and moral aspect” of the Rosarno clashes “is crucial in the identification of the joint responsibility of a year-long phenomenon, marked by the tragic condition of a ‘people’ exploited within an illegal environment and in an evident state of degradation”, said Father Silvio Mesiti, chaplain in the prison of Palmi and assistant of the Catholic jurist union of the diocese of Oppido-Palmi. The Church in the diocese has always been “sensitive to these problems, and has been capable of addressing urgencies. Indeed, Msgr. Bux solicited the direct intervention of the authorities in charge, which partly mended the situation, and coordinated the action of volunteer workers at local level”, he said. The priest underlined that hundreds of volunteer workers are serving in the refectories of Rosarno, under the guidance of their parish priests, Father Giuseppe Varrà and father Carmelo Ascone. The force to denounce. “For years the Church of Oppido Mamertina-Palmi has been courageously involved in conveying religious witness and evangelical proclamation within a difficult social environment, and repeatedly denounced the unsustainable condition of the many immigrant brothers exploited and humiliated in their human dignity”. “We do very much as a Church but we can’t solve all the problems that should be addressed by the relevant institutions in charge”, said Msgr. Vittorio Mondello, President of Calabria’s bishops’ conference. A “very dark page” was turned, said the editor of the daily “L’Avvenire di Calabria” (diocese of Reggio Calabria-Bova and Locri-Gerace) Filippo Curatola referring to the clashes. Although we must not overlook “the extraordinary commitment of parish Caritas centres in Rosarno in providing assistance to the migrants”, along with “the exemplary case of Norina Ventre, the so-called Mother Africa”, “the personal experiences of the many families that prepared meals for some of the immigrants”, and “the group of volunteers who at four in the morning would visit the shacks to bring a warm cup of tea and a meal to their migrant brothers”.