AFRICA/EGYPT - “At the heart of the revolt is also the divide between the consumerism diffused by the media and the poverty of the people,” Bishop of Luxor tells Fides

Luxor (Agenzia Fides) - “The situation is calm because everyone in Luxor, Christians and Muslims, work with tourism,” Fides was told by Bishop Joannes Zakaria of the Coptic Catholics in Luxor, Egypt. “Everyone has an interest in avoiding disorder to preserve the tourism. Unfortunately, however, the tourism presence is minimal. I spoke with people who work in the hotels and in the markets and they described a worrying situation. The first to have expenses are the poorest workers who find themselves without work or a salary.
“In our churches every day we pray for peace in our Country. I try to attend every night, to instil calm and hope in the faithful,” said Bishop Zakaria.
“The world is experiencing difficult times, caused by the economic and global financial crisis, which takes a particularly heavy toll on developing countries. Underlying everything is a policy that is focused on selfishness and not on the promotion of human dignity. If only the warnings contained in Documents and Messages of John Paul II and Benedict XVI had been heard, which clearly indicate that the way of peace is through the promotion of the dignity of all people,” said Bishop Zakaria. “It is especially the young people without prospects who are leading the revolt. The media played a role in triggering their anger because they have spread a message of transient and consumerist culture in a country where most people are poor. At the cinema and on television, movies and TV series filmed in luxurious palaces are shown continually while many Egyptians struggle to feed their families.
“What we're seeing in Egypt could happen in any other Country where there is a strong social and economic divide,” concluded Bishop Zakaria. (LM) (Agenzia Fides 4/2/2011)