AFRICA/LIBYA - "I pray for reconciliation between the Libyans", says Bishop Martinelli from Tripoli

Tripoli (Fides Service) - "We need sincere dialogue to keep Libya united. I hope that the Libyans are reconciled. I hope in a sincere reconciliation between Tripoli and Benghazi, without prejudice and without special claims. I pray that Libya does not divide and Libyans can be reconciled" says His Exc. Mgr. Giovanni Innocenzo Martinelli, Apostolic Vicar of Tripoli.
Faced with the increasing domestic and international pressure for the leader Gaddafi to move aside, and the conviction for crimes against humanity of the International Criminal Court, Bishop Martinellis says: "It is really hard to think of a spontaneous departure on behalf of Gaddafi , as recently confirmed by his son, the leader intends to remain in Libya. From a formal point of view, Gaddafi is neither the President nor the Prime Minister of Libya, but he has certainly been a symbol of this country and in the past 40 years the country has grown with him. I think we need to understand the spirit of this man who feels in some way the 'father' of modern Libya. Certainly there are allegations against him that could be judged, but we must take this reality into account, not to create dialogues far-fetched".
Mgr. Martinelli also recalled that "thousands and thousands of people, some say a million, but the figure is too high, showed on Friday 1st July and in the days following their support to the leader Gaddafi". Regarding the situation in Tripoli, Mgr. Martinelli states that "the bombings continue, even if not in Tripoli, where in the last 2-3 days we did not hear the blast of bombs, but only the noise of the planes that flew over the city at a high altitude". (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 07/04/2011)