Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
San Salvador (Agenzia Fides) – The Catholic Church in El Salvador has strongly condemned the massacre that occurred in the rural area of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, where 72 migrants from Central and South America, including at least 12 Salvadorans (see Fides 27/08/2010), were executed. The Archbishop of San Salvador, Archbishop José Luis Escobar Alas, in his customary Sunday press conference, said: "it must be said that our brothers are permanently victims of abuse, injustice, violence, and it cannot go on like this.” The Archbishop has asked the governments of El Salvador and Mexico to investigate the tragic event so that justice is done and he also expressed his sympathy to the bereaved families.
Archbishop Escobar Alas considers it necessary to stop illegal emigration of Salvadorans into the United States: "This is not tourism, is to survive." The Archbishop said he was ready to congratulate the authorities if the government would manage to provide jobs and livelihood "so that no young person would have to emigrate from their country."
"The government of Mexico - he added - should also ensure the safety of these people. Failure to carry documents does not mean that they can be abused, insulted, humiliated, deprived of their property, and even killed. It is not possible; it is not right!" (CE) (Agenzia Fides 31/08/2010)
