Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Lima (Agenzia Fides) - 28 July is a special date for Peru: it is the anniversary of national independence, but this year the celebration has a special meaning because it coincides with the start of newly-elected President Ollanta Humala and parliamentarians’ mandate.
The Episcopal Conference of Peru, on the occasion of the 190th national anniversary, published a message, sent to Fides, entitled "For a future of progress and hope". In the message the Bishops ask the new Peruvian authorities to be aware that their actions determine the future of 30 million citizens and therefore they need to demonstrate a "democratic vocation, concerted management, efficiency and honesty". Mgr. Hector Miguel Cabrejos Vidarte, Archbishop of Trujillo and President of the Peruvian Episcopal Conference, recalls that "development must be integral and focused on services regarding health, nutrition, water, shelter and safety of citizens". The Archbishop also underlined that "to live with dignity, opportunities have to be created for those who have never had any before".
For the Episcopal Conference the future of the country relies mainly on the family, which should be safeguarded "by opting for life, the center of true development". The Bishops conclude hoping that fundamental values of the country are strengthened: "Democracy, the rule of law, the common good, justice, responsibility and social inclusion as well as the respect and promotion of human rights, especially for the less fortunate ".
(EC) (Agenzia Fides 07/27/2011)
