This May 23, Pope Francis urged the abolition of human trafficking, “one of the most terrible scourges of our time” that does not respect “or look anyone in the face, guaranteeing great benefits to people without moral scruples.” .
The Holy Father denounced this practice in his message addressed to the participants of the General Assembly “Talitha Kum”, the organization made up of survivors actively engaged in the fight against human trafficking.
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For Pope Francis, this practice is a “systemic” evil and that is why he assured that “we can and must eliminate it through a systematic approach at various levels.”
Likewise, he specified that “trafficking is reinforced by wars and conflicts, it benefits from the effects of climate change, socioeconomic inequalities, it takes advantage of the vulnerability of people forced to emigrate and the situation of inequality in the which are especially found among women and girls.”
He also pointed out that it is “an activity that does not respect or look anyone in the face, guaranteeing great benefits to people without moral scruples.”
“Trafficking is constantly evolving — he explained — and always finds new ways to develop, as happened during the pandemic.”
However, the Holy Father invited people not to become discouraged and assured that “the power of the Spirit of Jesus Christ and the dedication of so many can eliminate it.”
To do this, he stressed the need to follow the steps taken by the Talitha Kum organization: “be next to the victims, listen to them, help them get up and, together, act against trafficking.”
“To be truly effective against this hateful criminal phenomenon, we need to be a community,” he said.
He also warned that it is not easy but it is possible and thanked the work of this organization, which has become “a point of reference for victims, their families, people at risk and vulnerable communities.”
Finally, Pope Francis encouraged its members to continue on this path, “carrying out prevention and treatment actions and forging many valuable relationships, which are essential to combat and defeat trafficking.”
Almudena Martínez-Bordiú
I am a graduate in Journalism and Advertising from the CEU San Pablo University in Madrid. Specialized in religious information in Spain since 2015. I have been a senior correspondent for ACI Prensa and EWTN Noticias in the Vatican for two years and I am currently a European correspondent based in Spain.