The Pope on Luník IX caused a great response in foreign media – PRAVDA.sk

The Pope’s visit to the Luník IX housing estate in Košice on Tuesday provoked an extraordinary response from foreign media. During it, the Pontiff condemned prejudice and discrimination against the Roma.

Photo: The truth, Ivan Majerský

Košice housing estate Luník IX. before the arrival of Pope Francis.

VIDEO: This is how they waited for the Pope on Luník IX.

The Reuters agency wrote that František, during a visit to one of the poorest communities in Slovakia, said that it was wrong to throw the whole ethnic group into one bag.

“We cannot reduce the reality of others to match our preconceived notions,” the pontiff was quoted as saying by Reuters.

The American news agency AP wrote that František on Tuesday called on Slovak Roma to better integrate into society. The AP also recalled that the pope had met “the most socially excluded minority in the country, which has long suffered from discrimination, marginalization and poverty.”

The AP also stated that “František’s visit to Luník IX showed in some respects how excluded the Roma are: Slovak police and soldiers lined the fence along the pope’s main route, preventing residents who did not register in advance from entering a small seating area.” Despite this “problematic optics”, however, a visit to the housing estate was the culmination of František’s visit to Slovakia, writes AP.

The French agency AFP highlighted the Pope’s criticism of the fact that the Roma are often the target of prejudices and “hard trials” by the general public.

“The marginalization of others will not solve anything. Separating oneself from others eventually leads to anger. The path to peaceful coexistence lies in integration, “Pope AFP quoted. Her reporter on the spot also addressed several locals.

“(The Pope) gave us the feeling that we are equal with all people around the world,” Igor Šivák, 32, told AFP. At the same time, the French agency noticed that a few weeks before the pope’s visit, local authorities were hastily repairing roads and cleaning the area.

The German DPA agency wrote that František criticized the social exclusion of Roma in Slovakia.

“Ghettoizing people is not the answer. If you create a prison, sooner or later anger will break out, “the pope said according to the DPA. She wrote about Luník IX that it is a settlement known for its catastrophic housing conditions.

The portal of the British television BBC wrote that the pope in Košice apologized for the discrimination of the Roma by the Catholic Church. He asked them for forgiveness “for all the moments in history when we discriminated against, tortured or looked at you with distrust,” wrote the portal, which recalled that Roma had faced persecution in Europe for centuries.

Euronews quoted František as saying that Slovak Roma were often victims of “prejudices and harsh trials, discriminatory stereotypes, derogatory words and speeches” and even misunderstandings on the part of the Catholic Church.

Television pointed to the persistent discrimination and racism faced by Roma in Slovakia, as well as elsewhere in Central and Eastern Europe. According to the television, the distrust is mutual, while some Slovaks accuse the Roma of committing a crime and the Roma do not trust the state institutions, which often disappointed them.

The German station Deutsche Welle (DW) informed that Roma in Slovakia have been experiencing social exclusion for a long time, usually living in segregated settlements often without electricity, running water or heating.

The Czech news portal Novinky.cz also reminded František of his words that the Roma were often victims of prejudices, ruthless courts, discriminatory stereotypes, derogatory words and gestures. “It simply came to our notice then that we were all poorer. The poorer in humanity. To restore dignity, we need to move from prejudice to dialogue, from closure to integration, “Pope Novinky.cz quoted.

The American newspaper The New York Times (NYT) wrote that Pope Francis strictly rejected the use of the cross as an instrument of political struggle. The team apparently pointed to nationalist groups in Europe and beyond that used Christian symbols for personal gain, the newspaper said.

“Let us not limit the cross to the object of piety, much less to a political symbol or a sign of religious and social significance,” the pope said, according to the NYT.