Migrants “do not invade”: Pope Francis on Saturday confronted France and Europe with their “responsibilities” on the migration issue, on the second day of his visit to Marseille which will end with a giant mass at the stadium Velodrome, where thousands of people gathered well in advance.
Welcomed by Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron at the Pharo Palace, the 86-year-old Pope delivered a long speech to close the “Mediterranean Meetings” which for a week brought together 70 bishops and as many young people from around this sea marked by the presence of the three great monotheistic religions.
“Those who risk their lives at sea do not invade, they seek hospitality,” he said, believing that this process must be managed “with European responsibility capable of facing objective difficulties.”
An echo of his statements on Friday, when he castigated upon his arrival the “fear” and “indifference” faced with the fate of migrants seeking to cross the Mediterranean.
Strong words in a context of growing hostility in Europe towards candidates for exile and even as a new wave of arrivals on the Italian island of Lampedusa has tested the solidarity of the European Union .
The pope spoke in front of numerous French officials and European institutions, including the French Minister of the Interior Gérald Darmanin, who affirmed on Tuesday that France would not welcome migrants from Lampedusa, while the right and the extreme right castigated a “migratory submergence”.
The sovereign pontiff also pleaded for “integration” of migrants rather than “assimilation”, which “compromises the future” by “causing hostility and intolerance”.
At the end of the morning, the Pope spoke with President Emmanuel Macron, whose government must soon present a new law on immigration where the question of the regularization of undocumented workers is debated.
This is the fourth meeting between the two men, who maintain cordial relations and speak informally.
Another allusion to current events, the Pope mentioned the law expected in France on the end of life, warning against the “falsely worthy perspective of a gentle death”.
Earlier Saturday, the spiritual leader of the 1.3 billion Catholics visited the “missionaries of charity”, the order founded by Mother Teresa, in Saint-Maura, a very poor neighborhood close to the city center where nuns do social assistance, where he again insisted on fraternity “beyond political or religious thoughts”.
During a private meeting between the Pope and the leaders of SOS Méditerranée, a marine rescuer from the NGO also offered the sovereign pontiff a life jacket which made it possible to rescue “several hundred babies, children”.
Shortly after 3:00 p.m. (1:00 p.m. GMT), in the middle of an “extraordinary” security system, mobilizing 6,000 members of the police and a thousand private security agents, the Pope will head towards another very Marseille symbol. known, the Vélodrome stadium, home of the Olympique de Marseille transformed into a giant cathedral.
His trip, the first by a pope to Marseille in nearly 500 years, is creating excitement and Francis will make part of the trip in a “papamobile” along the Avenue du Prado decked out in the yellow and white colors of the Vatican. An avenue which, however, still sounded a little hollow, an hour before the arrival of the sovereign pontiff.
The stadium was starting to fill up, under a bright sun and a strong mistral.
“I’m a fan, we’re going to see the Pope, it’s so good! I feel like I’m going to a concert,” exulted Clément Barret, a 19-year-old student.
“The Pope fills me with calm, with peace. When he speaks, he makes me feel something enormous,” testified Sandra Vélez, a 53-year-old Colombian living in France, who came with her daughter and son to buy three blue scarves with the slogan “Mosaic of hope”.
Nearly 60,000 people obtained a ticket for the giant mass in this stadium which less than 48 hours earlier hosted the French XV for the Rugby World Cup.
Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte will attend the service, scheduled for 4 p.m. A presence which offended, in particular left-wing elected officials who accused the president of “trampling” on the principle of secularism.
The Pope will then immediately leave Marseille for Rome, after a final brief meeting with Emmanuel Macron at the airport.
23/09/2023 16:26:54 – Marseille (AFP) © 2023 AFP