Pope: World Water Day urges
defense of water access
 |
| A young woman carries a jug of water (ANSA) |
Pope Francis releases a message to mark World Water Day, and
says the misery of those who lack water challenges us to value this
indispensable good and fundamental human right.
By Devin Watkins
World Water Day is commemorated annually on March 22nd as
a way of concentrating efforts to resolve the water crisis that afflicts
people, often the poorest, around the world.
Pope Francis marked the Day on Friday with a message to the
Director General of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, José Graziano da
Silva.
Spreading aridity
“Water is an essential asset for the equilibrium of
ecosystems and human survival, and it must be managed and cared for so that it
is not polluted or lost,” he said.
The Pope noted how aridity and droughts are spreading to new
regions, leading to a lack of potable water for more and more people.
“Access to this good is a fundamental human right,” he
noted.
Leaving no one behind
The theme for the 2019 World Water Day is “Leaving no one behind”.
“Leaving no one behind”, he said, involves both maintaining
water structures and “investing in the future, educating new generations for
the use and care of water.”
The Holy Father said younger generations need “to value and
defend” access to water, saying efforts should begin with raising awareness
among those who suffer the consequences of climate change.
Financing long-term projects
He invited the international community to provide financing
for long-term water projects in places where it is lacking.
These efforts, he said, will help overcome “the vision of
turning water into a mere commodity, exclusively regulated by market forces.”
“The underprivileged of the earth challenge us to remedy the
lack of water in their countries,” the Pope said. “They also challenge us, from
their misery and limits, to recognize the value that this indispensable good
deserves for the development of all peoples.”
Pope Francis ended with a quotation from St. Francis of
Assisi: “May ‘water, which is very useful, humble, precious, and chaste’ serve
to sustain and benefit us and future generations.”
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét