Pesan Paus Fransiskus pada Hari Migran dan Pengungsi Sedunia 2017
(15 Januari 2017)
(15 Januari 2017)
“Migran Anak-Anak, yang Rentan dan Tak Punya Suara”
Saudara-Saudari yang terkasih,
"Barangsiapa menyambut seorang anak seperti ini dalam nama-Ku, ia menyambut Aku. Dan barangsiapa menyambut Aku, bukan Aku yang disambutnya, tetapi Dia yang mengutus Aku" (Mrk 9:37; bdk. Mat 18:5, Luk 9:48, Yoh 13:20). Melalui untaian kata tersebut, para Penginjil mengingatkan komunitas Kristiani akan ajaran Yesus yang memberi inspirasi dan sekaligus menantang. Frase tersebut menelusuri jalan setapak sejati menuju kepada Allah, yaitu jalan yang dimulai dengan yang paling kecil, dan melalui rahmat Penebus kita, bertumbuh menjadi praktik untuk menyambut orang lain. Menyambut adalah syarat yang diperlukan untuk membuat perjalanan tersebut menjadi kenyataan; bahwa Allah telah menyatukan diri-Nya dengan kita. Dalam diri Yesus, Allah menjadi seorang anak, dan keterbukaan iman akan Allah yang menumbuhkan harapan, diungkapkan dalam kedekatan yang penuh kasih dengan yang paling kecil dan paling lemah. Kasih, iman, dan harapan secara aktif hadir dalam karya-karya belas kasih rohani dan jasmani, yang telah kita temukan kembali selama Tahun Yubileum Luar Biasa Belas Kasih Allah yang lalu.
Namun, para Penginjil juga berefleksi tentang tanggung jawab orang yang bertindak melawan belas kasih: “Barangsiapa menyesatkan salah satu dari anak-anak kecil ini yang percaya kepada-Ku, lebih baik baginya jika sebuah batu kilangan diikatkan pada lehernya lalu ia ditenggelamkan ke dalam laut” (Mat 18:6; bdk. Mrk 9:42, Luk 17:2). Bagaimana kita dapat mengabaikan peringatan keras ini ketika menyaksikan eksploitasi yang dilakukan oleh orang-orang yang jahat itu? Eksploitasi ini membahayakan hidup remaja perempuan dan laki-laki yang dijerumuskan ke dalam prostitusi atau terperosok dalam lumpur pornografi; yang diperbudak sebagai buruh atau tentara anak-anak; yang terperangkap dalam perdagangan obat bius dan bentuk kriminalitas lainnya; yang terpaksa mengungsi dari konflik dan persekusi, yang berisiko menjadi terasing dan terabaikan.
Karena alasan tersebut, pada kesempatan peringatan tahunan Hari Migran dan Pengungsi Sedunia, saya merasa terdorong untuk menarik perhatian kita semua pada kenyataan migran anak-anak, khususnya mereka yang pergi sendirian. Untuk itu, saya meminta setiap dari kita untuk memperhatikan migran anak-anak, yang rentan dalam tiga hal, yaitu bahwa mereka anak-anak, mereka orang asing, dan mereka tidak punya cara untuk melindungi diri mereka sendiri. Saya memohon setiap orang untuk membantu mereka, yang karena berbagai alasan, terpaksa hidup jauh dari tanah air mereka dan terpisah dari keluarga mereka.
Dewasa ini, migrasi bukan hanya fenomena yang terbatas pada kawasan tertentu di planet ini. Migrasi mempengaruhi seluruh benua dan berkembang menjadi situasi tragis dalam skala global. Situasi ini tidak hanya mengenai mereka yang sedang mencari pekerjaan yang layak atau kondisi hidup yang lebih baik, tetapi juga dialami oleh laki-laki dan perempuan, serta kaum lansia dan anak-anak, yang terpaksa meninggalkan rumah mereka dalam pengharapan akan keselamatan, kedamaian, dan keamanan. Anak-anaklah yang pertama-tama harus membayar mahal emigrasi, yang hampir selalu disebabkan oleh kekerasan, kemiskinan, kondisi lingkungan hidup, dan aspek-aspek negatif dari globalisasi. Kompetisi tak terkendali demi keuntungan yang diraup dengan mudah dan cepat, menyebabkan menjalarnya bencana yang jahat seperti perdagangan anak, eksploitasi dan pelecehan terhadap anak-anak, dan secara umum, perampasan hak yang secara intrinsik dimiliki oleh anak-anak sebagaimana dikukuhkan oleh Konvensi Hak Anak.
Masa anak-anak, mengingat sifatnya yang rentan, memiliki kebutuhan yang khas dan tidak dapat dicerabut. Di atas segalanya, anak-anak memiliki hak atas lingkungan keluarga yang sehat dan aman, tempat anak dapat bertumbuh dalam pendampingan serta teladan ayah dan ibunya. Kemudian, ada hak dan kewajiban untuk menerima pendidikan yang memadai, pertama-tama di dalam keluarga dan juga di sekolah, tempat anak dapat bertumbuh sebagai pribadi dan pelaku bagi masa depan mereka sendiri, dan masa depan negara mereka masing-masing. Sungguh, di banyak tempat di dunia ini, membaca, menulis, dan aritmatika dasar masih menjadi privilese bagi sedikit anak saja. Selain itu, semua anak memiliki hak untuk bermain. Singkatnya, mereka memiliki hak untuk menjadi anak-anak.
Di kalangan migran, anak-anak merupakan kelompok yang paling rentan, karena selagi menatap masa depan, mereka tidak tampak dan tidak punya suara. Situasi darurat dan berbahaya yang mereka alami telah merampas mereka dari kesempatan untuk mendapatkan dokumen-dokumen identitas yang penting dan menyembunyikan mereka dari mata dunia. Karena terpaksa pergi tanpa orang dewasa yang mendampingi, suara mereka tidak terdengar. Karena itu, migran anak-anak dengan mudah terpuruk pada tingkat yang paling rendah dalam degradasi kemanusiaan, di mana ilegalitas dan kekerasan menghancurkan masa depan begitu banyak anak yang tidak berdosa ini, sementara jaringan kejahatan terhadap anak-anak sulit dihentikan.
Di kalangan migran, anak-anak merupakan kelompok yang paling rentan, karena selagi menatap masa depan, mereka tidak tampak dan tidak punya suara. Situasi darurat dan berbahaya yang mereka alami telah merampas mereka dari kesempatan untuk mendapatkan dokumen-dokumen identitas yang penting dan menyembunyikan mereka dari mata dunia. Karena terpaksa pergi tanpa orang dewasa yang mendampingi, suara mereka tidak terdengar. Karena itu, migran anak-anak dengan mudah terpuruk pada tingkat yang paling rendah dalam degradasi kemanusiaan, di mana ilegalitas dan kekerasan menghancurkan masa depan begitu banyak anak yang tidak berdosa ini, sementara jaringan kejahatan terhadap anak-anak sulit dihentikan.
Bagaimana seharusnya kita merespons kenyataan ini?
Pertama-tama, kita perlu menyadari bahwa fenomena migrasi merupakan bagian yang tidak terpisahkan dari sejarah keselamatan. Salah satu perintah Allah berkaitan dengan migrasi: "Janganlah kautindas atau kautekan seorang orang asing, sebab kamu pun dahulu adalah orang asing di tanah Mesir” (Keluaran 22:21); “Sebab itu haruslah kamu menunjukkan kasihmu kepada orang asing, sebab kamu pun dahulu adalah orang asing di tanah Mesir” (Ulangan 10:19). Fenomena ini merupakan tanda-tanda zaman, yakni tanda yang berbicara tentang karya penyelenggaraan Ilahi dalam sejarah dan komunitas umat manusia, dengan pandangan yang terarah pada persaudaraan universal. Sementara memahami betapa bernilai fenomena migrasi, kendati menyadari penderitaan dan tragedi yang terjadi di dalamnya, serta kesulitan-kesulitan yang terkait dengan desakan untuk menawarkan sambutan yang bermartabat bagi para migran, Gereja mendorong kita untuk mengenali rencana Allah. Gereja mengundang kita untuk menyadarinya, persis di tengah fenomena ini, dengan kepastian bahwa tidak ada seorang pun akan terasing di tengah komunitas Kristiani, yang merangkul “segala bangsa, dan suku, dan kaum, dan bahasa” (Wahyu 7:9). Setiap pribadi berharga; pribadi lebih penting daripada benda, dan nilai sebuah institusi diukur dari caranya memperlakukan hidup dan martabat manusia, khususnya mereka yang rentan, dalam hal ini adalah migran anak-anak.
Selanjutnya, kita perlu mengupayakan perlindungan, integrasi, dan solusi jangka panjang.
Kita pertama-tama perlu menggunakan segala langkah yang mungkin untuk menjamin perlindungan dan keamanan migran anak-anak, karena “anak-anak laki-laki dan perempuan ini seringkali telantar di jalanan, terabaikan, dan menjadi mangsa bagi para pengeksploitasi yang kejam, yang sering menjadikan mereka sebagai objek kekerasan fisik, moral, dan seksual” (Benedictus XVI, Pesan pada Hari Migran dan Pengungsi Sedunia, 2008).
Kita pertama-tama perlu menggunakan segala langkah yang mungkin untuk menjamin perlindungan dan keamanan migran anak-anak, karena “anak-anak laki-laki dan perempuan ini seringkali telantar di jalanan, terabaikan, dan menjadi mangsa bagi para pengeksploitasi yang kejam, yang sering menjadikan mereka sebagai objek kekerasan fisik, moral, dan seksual” (Benedictus XVI, Pesan pada Hari Migran dan Pengungsi Sedunia, 2008).
Garis pemisah antara migrasi dan perdagangan manusia kadang amat tipis. Ada banyak faktor yang membuat migran rentan, khususnya jika mereka anak-anak, yaitu kemiskinan dan terbatasnya sarana untuk bertahan hidup – ditambah dengan tuntutan tidak realistis terhadap migran yang diangkat oleh media; rendahnya tingkat melek huruf; ketidakpedulian tatanan hukum negara penerima, serta kesulitan yang terkait dengan budaya dan bahasa negara penerima. Semua ini menyebabkan migran anak-anak tergantung secara fisik dan psikologis. Namun daya yang paling kuat mendorong terjadinya eksploitasi dan kekejaman terhadap anak-anak adalah permintaan pasar. Jika tidak diambil tindakan yang lebih keras dan efektif untuk melawan mereka yang mengambil keuntungan dari kejahatan semacam itu, kita tidak akan mampu menghentikan berlipatgandanya bentuk perbudakan yang membuat anak-anak menjadi korban.
Oleh karena itu, para imigran perlu bekerja sama lebih erat dengan komunitas-komunitas yang menyambut mereka, demi kebaikan anak-anak mereka sendiri. Kita amat bersyukur atas organisasi dan institusi, baik gerejani maupun sipil, yang mencurahkan waktu dan sumber daya untuk melindungi migran anak-anak dari aneka bentuk kejahatan. Penting bahwa kerja sama berkelanjutan yang efektif dan tepat dilaksanakan, tidak hanya kerja sama yang berdasar pada pertukaran informasi, tetapi juga pada penguatan jaringan-jaringan yang mampu memastikan campur tangan yang tepat waktu dan khas. Ini dilakukan tanpa mengabaikan kekuatan komunitas-komunitas gerejani yang nampak, khususnya ketika mereka berpadu dalam doa dan ikatan persaudaraan.
Kedua, kita perlu bekerja bagi integrasi migran anak-anak dan remaja. Mereka tergantung sepenuhnya pada komunitas orang dewasa. Seringkali langkanya sumber daya finansial menghalangi penerapan kebijakan yang memadai bagi migran, yang dimaksudkan untuk membantu mereka dan menuntun mereka untuk masuk dalam komunitas masyarakat. Akibatnya, alih-alih memberlakukan integrasi sosial bagi migran anak atau program repatriasi yang aman dan terdampingi, yang ada hanyalah upaya untuk membatasi masuknya migran, yang pada gilirannya menyuburkan jaringan-jaringan ilegal; atau imigran dipulangkan ke negara asalnya tanpa sedikit pun memperhatikan asas “kepentingan terbaik” mereka.
Kondisi migran anak memburuk ketika status mereka tidak diakui secara resmi atau ketika mereka direkrut oleh organisasi kriminal. Dalam kasus semacam ini, mereka biasanya dimasukkan ke pusat-pusat penahanan (detensi). Bukan hal yang baru bahwa mereka ditangkap, dan karena tidak punya uang untuk membayar denda atau untuk perjalanan pulang, mereka dapat ditahan untuk jangka waktu yang lama, mengalami berbagai bentuk pelecehan dan kekerasan. Dalam kejadian semacam itu, hak negara untuk mengendalikan gerak migrasi dan melindungi kepentingan negara harus dilihat dalam kaitannya dengan tanggung jawab untuk menuntaskan masalah dan mengakui status migran anak, menghormati sepenuhnya martabat mereka, dan mengupayakan pemenuhan kebutuhan mereka saat mereka sendirian, tetapi juga kebutuhan orangtua mereka, demi kepentingan seluruh keluarga.
Yang penting dan mendasar adalah penerapan prosedur nasional yang memadai dan rencana-rencana kerja sama yang disetujui oleh negara asal dan negara tujuan migran, dengan tujuan untuk menghapuskan hal-hal yang menyebabkan anak-anak terpaksa meninggalkan negaranya.
Ketiga, saya menyampaikan seruan yang tulus kepada semua pihak untuk mencari dan menerapkan solusi jangka panjang. Karena merupakan fenomena yang kompleks, masalah migran anak-anak harus diatasi pada sumbernya. Perang, pelanggaran hak asasi manusia, korupsi, kemiskinan, ketidakseimbangan lingkungan hidup, dan bencana adalah penyebab masalah tersebut. Anak-anak adalah yang pertama-tama menderita, entah menderita akibat penganiayaan dan kekerasan fisik lainnya, atau menderita akibat agresi moral dan psikologis, yang hampir pasti meninggalkan bekas luka yang tak terhapuskan.
Oleh karena itu, mutlak perlu mengurai sebab-sebab yang memicu migrasi di negara-negara asal migran. Sebagai langkah pertama, diperlukan komitmen komunitas internasional seluruhnya untuk menghapuskan konflik dan kekerasan yang memaksa orang mengungsi. Selain itu, dibutuhkan perspektif jauh ke depan yang mampu menawarkan program yang memadai di daerah-daerah yang terkena dampak ketidakadilan dan ketidakstabilan yang amat parah, supaya akses terhadap pembangunan yang otentik dapat dijamin bagi semua pihak. Pembangunan ini seharusnya meningkatkan kepentingan anak-anak laki-laki dan perempuan, yang merupakan harapan umat manusia.
Akhirnya, saya ingin menyampaikan sepatah kata bagi Anda yang berjalan di samping migran anak-anak dan remaja: mereka membutuhkan bantuan Anda yang begitu berharga. Gereja pun membutuhkan Anda dan mendukung Anda dalam pelayanan murah hati yang Anda tawarkan. Jangan lelah menghidupi Kabar Gembira dengan jiwa besar, yakni Kabar Gembira yang mengundang Anda untuk mengenali dan menyambut Tuhan Yesus di antara mereka yang paling kecil dan rentan.
Saya mempercayakan semua migran anak-anak, keluarga mereka, komunitas mereka, dan Anda yang dekat dengan mereka, pada perlindungan Keluarga Kudus Nazaret; semoga Keluarga Kudus melindungi dan menemani setiap pribadi dalam perjalanan mereka. Dalam doa-doa saya, dengan senang hati saya memberikan Berkat Apostolik.
Dari Vatikan, 8 September 2016
Fransiskus
Fransiskus
Link teks bahasa Inggris: http://w2.vatican.va/…/papa-francesco_20160908_world-migran…
MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS
FOR THE WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES 2017
[15 January 2017]
“Child Migrants, the Vulnerable and the Voiceless”
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me” (Mk 9:37; cf. Mt 18:5; Lk 9:48; Jn 13:20). With these words, the Evangelists remind the Christian community of Jesus’ teaching, which both inspires and challenges. This phrase traces the sure path which leads to God; it begins with the smallest and, through the grace of our Saviour, it grows into the practice of welcoming others. To be welcoming is a necessary condition for making this journey a concrete reality: God made himself one of us. In Jesus God became a child, and the openness of faith to God, which nourishes hope, is expressed in loving proximity to the smallest and the weakest. Charity, faith and hope are all actively present in the spiritual and corporal works of mercy, as we have rediscovered during the recent Extraordinary Jubilee.
But the Evangelists reflect also on the responsibility of the one who works against mercy: “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin: it is better for him to have a great millstone fastened round his neck and be drowned in the depth of the sea” (Mt 18:6; cf. Mk 9:42; Lk 17:2). How can we ignore this severe warning when we see the exploitation carried out by unscrupulous people? Such exploitation harms young girls and boys who are led into prostitution or into the mire of pornography; who are enslaved as child labourers or soldiers; who are caught up in drug trafficking and other forms of criminality; who are forced to flee from conflict and persecution, risking isolation and abandonment.
For this reason, on the occasion of the annual World Day of Migrants and Refugees, I feel compelled to draw attention to the reality of child migrants, especially the ones who are alone. In doing so I ask everyone to take care of the young, who in a threefold way are defenceless: they are children, they are foreigners, and they have no means to protect themselves. I ask everyone to help those who, for various reasons, are forced to live far from their homeland and are separated from their families.
Migration today is not a phenomenon limited to some areas of the planet. It affects all continents and is growing into a tragic situation of global proportions. Not only does this concern those looking for dignified work or better living conditions, but also men and women, the elderly and children, who are forced to leave their homes in the hope of finding safety, peace and security. Children are the first among those to pay the heavy toll of emigration, almost always caused by violence, poverty, environmental conditions, as well as the negative aspects of globalization. The unrestrained competition for quick and easy profit brings with it the cultivation of perverse scourges such as child trafficking, the exploitation and abuse of minors and, generally, the depriving of rights intrinsic to childhood as sanctioned by the International Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Childhood, given its fragile nature, has unique and inalienable needs. Above all else, there is the right to a healthy and secure family environment, where a child can grow under the guidance and example of a father and a mother; then there is the right and duty to receive adequate education, primarily in the family and also in the school, where children can grow as persons and agents of their own future and the future of their respective countries. Indeed, in many areas of the world, reading, writing and the most basic arithmetic is still the privilege of only a few. All children, furthermore, have the right to recreation; in a word, they have the right to be children.
And yet among migrants, children constitute the most vulnerable group, because as they face the life ahead of them, they are invisible and voiceless: their precarious situation deprives them of documentation, hiding them from the world’s eyes; the absence of adults to accompany them prevents their voices from being raised and heard. In this way, migrant children easily end up at the lowest levels of human degradation, where illegality and violence destroy the future of too many innocents, while the network of child abuse is difficult to break up.
How should we respond to this reality?
Firstly, we need to become aware that the phenomenon of migration is not unrelated to salvation history, but rather a part of that history. One of God’s commandments is connected to it: “You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Ex 22:21); “Love the sojourner therefore; for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt” (Deut 10:19). This phenomenon constitutes a sign of the times, a sign which speaks of the providential work of God in history and in the human community, with a view to universal communion. While appreciating the issues, and often the suffering and tragedy of migration, as too the difficulties connected with the demands of offering a dignified welcome to these persons, the Church nevertheless encourages us to recognize God’s plan. She invites us to do this precisely amidst this phenomenon, with the certainty that no one is a stranger in the Christian community, which embraces “every nation, tribe, people and tongue” (Rev 7:9). Each person is precious; persons are more important than things, and the worth of an institution is measured by the way it treats the life and dignity of human beings, particularly when they are vulnerable, as in the case of child migrants.
Furthermore, we need to work towards protection, integration and long-term solutions.
We are primarily concerned with adopting every possible measure to guarantee the protection and safety of child migrants, because “these boys and girls often end up on the street abandoned to themselves and prey to unscrupulous exploiters who often transform them into the object of physical, moral and sexual violence” (Benedict XVI, Message for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, 2008).
Moreover, the dividing line between migration and trafficking can at times be very subtle. There are many factors which contribute to making migrants vulnerable, especially if they are children: poverty and the lack of means to survive – to which are added unrealistic expectations generated by the media; the low level of literacy; ignorance of the law, of the culture and frequently of the language of host countries. All of this renders children physically and psychologically dependent. But the most powerful force driving the exploitation and abuse of children is demand. If more rigorous and effective action is not taken against those who profit from such abuse, we will not be able to stop the multiple forms of slavery where children are the victims.
It is necessary, therefore, for immigrants to cooperate ever more closely with the communities that welcome them, for the good of their own children. We are deeply grateful to organizations and institutions, both ecclesial and civil, that commit time and resources to protect minors from various forms of abuse. It is important that evermore effective and incisive cooperation be implemented, based not only on the exchange of information, but also on the reinforcement of networks capable of assuring timely and specific intervention; and this, without underestimating the strength that ecclesial communities reveal especially when they are united in prayer and fraternal communion.
Secondly, we need to work for the integration of children and youngsters who are migrants. They depend totally on the adult community. Very often the scarcity of financial resources prevents the adoption of adequate policies aimed at assistance and inclusion. As a result, instead of favouring the social integration of child migrants, or programmes for safe and assisted repatriation, there is simply an attempt to curb the entrance of migrants, which in turn fosters illegal networks; or else immigrants are repatriated to their country of origin without any concern for their “best interests”.
The condition of child migrants is worsened when their status is not regularized or when they are recruited by criminal organizations. In such cases they are usually sent to detention centres. It is not unusual for them to be arrested, and because they have no money to pay the fine or for the return journey, they can be incarcerated for long periods, exposed to various kinds of abuse and violence. In these instances, the right of states to control migratory movement and to protect the common good of the nation must be seen in conjunction with the duty to resolve and regularize the situation of child migrants, fully respecting their dignity and seeking to meet their needs when they are alone, but also the needs of their parents, for the good of the entire family.
Of fundamental importance is the adoption of adequate national procedures and mutually agreed plans of cooperation between countries of origin and of destination, with the intention of eliminating the causes of the forced emigration of minors.
Thirdly, to all I address a heartfelt appeal that long-term solutions be sought and adopted. Since this is a complex phenomenon, the question of child migrants must be tackled at its source. Wars, human rights violations, corruption, poverty, environmental imbalance and disasters, are all causes of this problem. Children are the first to suffer, at times suffering torture and other physical violence, in addition to moral and psychological aggression, which almost always leave indelible scars.
It is absolutely necessary, therefore, to deal with the causes which trigger migrations in the countries of origin. This requires, as a first step, the commitment of the whole international community to eliminate the conflicts and violence that force people to flee. Furthermore, far-sighted perspectives are called for, capable of offering adequate programmes for areas struck by the worst injustice and instability, in order that access to authentic development can be guaranteed for all. This development should promote the good of boys and girls, who are humanity’s hope.
Lastly, I wish to address a word to you, who walk alongside migrant children and young people: they need your precious help. The Church too needs you and supports you in the generous service you offer. Do not tire of courageously living the Gospel, which calls you to recognize and welcome the Lord Jesus among the smallest and most vulnerable.
I entrust all child migrants, their families, their communities, and you who are close to them, to the protection of the Holy Family of Nazareth; may they watch over and accompany each one on their journey. With my prayers, I gladly impart my Apostolic Blessing.
From the Vatican, 8 September 2016
FRANCIS
FOR THE WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES 2017
[15 January 2017]
“Child Migrants, the Vulnerable and the Voiceless”
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me” (Mk 9:37; cf. Mt 18:5; Lk 9:48; Jn 13:20). With these words, the Evangelists remind the Christian community of Jesus’ teaching, which both inspires and challenges. This phrase traces the sure path which leads to God; it begins with the smallest and, through the grace of our Saviour, it grows into the practice of welcoming others. To be welcoming is a necessary condition for making this journey a concrete reality: God made himself one of us. In Jesus God became a child, and the openness of faith to God, which nourishes hope, is expressed in loving proximity to the smallest and the weakest. Charity, faith and hope are all actively present in the spiritual and corporal works of mercy, as we have rediscovered during the recent Extraordinary Jubilee.
But the Evangelists reflect also on the responsibility of the one who works against mercy: “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin: it is better for him to have a great millstone fastened round his neck and be drowned in the depth of the sea” (Mt 18:6; cf. Mk 9:42; Lk 17:2). How can we ignore this severe warning when we see the exploitation carried out by unscrupulous people? Such exploitation harms young girls and boys who are led into prostitution or into the mire of pornography; who are enslaved as child labourers or soldiers; who are caught up in drug trafficking and other forms of criminality; who are forced to flee from conflict and persecution, risking isolation and abandonment.
For this reason, on the occasion of the annual World Day of Migrants and Refugees, I feel compelled to draw attention to the reality of child migrants, especially the ones who are alone. In doing so I ask everyone to take care of the young, who in a threefold way are defenceless: they are children, they are foreigners, and they have no means to protect themselves. I ask everyone to help those who, for various reasons, are forced to live far from their homeland and are separated from their families.
Migration today is not a phenomenon limited to some areas of the planet. It affects all continents and is growing into a tragic situation of global proportions. Not only does this concern those looking for dignified work or better living conditions, but also men and women, the elderly and children, who are forced to leave their homes in the hope of finding safety, peace and security. Children are the first among those to pay the heavy toll of emigration, almost always caused by violence, poverty, environmental conditions, as well as the negative aspects of globalization. The unrestrained competition for quick and easy profit brings with it the cultivation of perverse scourges such as child trafficking, the exploitation and abuse of minors and, generally, the depriving of rights intrinsic to childhood as sanctioned by the International Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Childhood, given its fragile nature, has unique and inalienable needs. Above all else, there is the right to a healthy and secure family environment, where a child can grow under the guidance and example of a father and a mother; then there is the right and duty to receive adequate education, primarily in the family and also in the school, where children can grow as persons and agents of their own future and the future of their respective countries. Indeed, in many areas of the world, reading, writing and the most basic arithmetic is still the privilege of only a few. All children, furthermore, have the right to recreation; in a word, they have the right to be children.
And yet among migrants, children constitute the most vulnerable group, because as they face the life ahead of them, they are invisible and voiceless: their precarious situation deprives them of documentation, hiding them from the world’s eyes; the absence of adults to accompany them prevents their voices from being raised and heard. In this way, migrant children easily end up at the lowest levels of human degradation, where illegality and violence destroy the future of too many innocents, while the network of child abuse is difficult to break up.
How should we respond to this reality?
Firstly, we need to become aware that the phenomenon of migration is not unrelated to salvation history, but rather a part of that history. One of God’s commandments is connected to it: “You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Ex 22:21); “Love the sojourner therefore; for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt” (Deut 10:19). This phenomenon constitutes a sign of the times, a sign which speaks of the providential work of God in history and in the human community, with a view to universal communion. While appreciating the issues, and often the suffering and tragedy of migration, as too the difficulties connected with the demands of offering a dignified welcome to these persons, the Church nevertheless encourages us to recognize God’s plan. She invites us to do this precisely amidst this phenomenon, with the certainty that no one is a stranger in the Christian community, which embraces “every nation, tribe, people and tongue” (Rev 7:9). Each person is precious; persons are more important than things, and the worth of an institution is measured by the way it treats the life and dignity of human beings, particularly when they are vulnerable, as in the case of child migrants.
Furthermore, we need to work towards protection, integration and long-term solutions.
We are primarily concerned with adopting every possible measure to guarantee the protection and safety of child migrants, because “these boys and girls often end up on the street abandoned to themselves and prey to unscrupulous exploiters who often transform them into the object of physical, moral and sexual violence” (Benedict XVI, Message for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, 2008).
Moreover, the dividing line between migration and trafficking can at times be very subtle. There are many factors which contribute to making migrants vulnerable, especially if they are children: poverty and the lack of means to survive – to which are added unrealistic expectations generated by the media; the low level of literacy; ignorance of the law, of the culture and frequently of the language of host countries. All of this renders children physically and psychologically dependent. But the most powerful force driving the exploitation and abuse of children is demand. If more rigorous and effective action is not taken against those who profit from such abuse, we will not be able to stop the multiple forms of slavery where children are the victims.
It is necessary, therefore, for immigrants to cooperate ever more closely with the communities that welcome them, for the good of their own children. We are deeply grateful to organizations and institutions, both ecclesial and civil, that commit time and resources to protect minors from various forms of abuse. It is important that evermore effective and incisive cooperation be implemented, based not only on the exchange of information, but also on the reinforcement of networks capable of assuring timely and specific intervention; and this, without underestimating the strength that ecclesial communities reveal especially when they are united in prayer and fraternal communion.
Secondly, we need to work for the integration of children and youngsters who are migrants. They depend totally on the adult community. Very often the scarcity of financial resources prevents the adoption of adequate policies aimed at assistance and inclusion. As a result, instead of favouring the social integration of child migrants, or programmes for safe and assisted repatriation, there is simply an attempt to curb the entrance of migrants, which in turn fosters illegal networks; or else immigrants are repatriated to their country of origin without any concern for their “best interests”.
The condition of child migrants is worsened when their status is not regularized or when they are recruited by criminal organizations. In such cases they are usually sent to detention centres. It is not unusual for them to be arrested, and because they have no money to pay the fine or for the return journey, they can be incarcerated for long periods, exposed to various kinds of abuse and violence. In these instances, the right of states to control migratory movement and to protect the common good of the nation must be seen in conjunction with the duty to resolve and regularize the situation of child migrants, fully respecting their dignity and seeking to meet their needs when they are alone, but also the needs of their parents, for the good of the entire family.
Of fundamental importance is the adoption of adequate national procedures and mutually agreed plans of cooperation between countries of origin and of destination, with the intention of eliminating the causes of the forced emigration of minors.
Thirdly, to all I address a heartfelt appeal that long-term solutions be sought and adopted. Since this is a complex phenomenon, the question of child migrants must be tackled at its source. Wars, human rights violations, corruption, poverty, environmental imbalance and disasters, are all causes of this problem. Children are the first to suffer, at times suffering torture and other physical violence, in addition to moral and psychological aggression, which almost always leave indelible scars.
It is absolutely necessary, therefore, to deal with the causes which trigger migrations in the countries of origin. This requires, as a first step, the commitment of the whole international community to eliminate the conflicts and violence that force people to flee. Furthermore, far-sighted perspectives are called for, capable of offering adequate programmes for areas struck by the worst injustice and instability, in order that access to authentic development can be guaranteed for all. This development should promote the good of boys and girls, who are humanity’s hope.
Lastly, I wish to address a word to you, who walk alongside migrant children and young people: they need your precious help. The Church too needs you and supports you in the generous service you offer. Do not tire of courageously living the Gospel, which calls you to recognize and welcome the Lord Jesus among the smallest and most vulnerable.
I entrust all child migrants, their families, their communities, and you who are close to them, to the protection of the Holy Family of Nazareth; may they watch over and accompany each one on their journey. With my prayers, I gladly impart my Apostolic Blessing.
From the Vatican, 8 September 2016
FRANCIS
