Pope Francis wrapped up his two-day visit to Cyprus on Friday in Nicosia with a mass for migrants that included a strongly worded condemnation of the “slavery” and “torture” endured by asylum-seekers in camps.
The Pope concluded his apostolic journey to the island with an ecumenical prayer service in which he denounced the “indifference” that the West shows incomers.
“It reminds us of the history of the last century, of the Nazis, of Stalin, and we wonder how this could have happened,” the pontiff said at the Parish Church of the Holy Cross in Europe's last divided capital.
During the mass, four migrants from different parts of the world shared stories of their journeys and the suffering they had experienced. After listening to them, Pope Francis said: “We better understand the prophetic power of the word of God, who tells us … ‘You are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God’.”
He went on to criticise the “developed civilisations of the West” who refuse to accept migrants or send them back to countries where they would be “confined, tortured and enslaved”, a reference to the recent migrant crisis in Europe in which hundreds of people were pushed back between the borders of Poland and Belarus.
The Vatican said that at least 12 migrants would be taken from the Mediterranean island to Italy, AP reported. The Pope, however, did not confirm the transfer himself during his ceremony.
The Rome-based Sant’Egidio Community has arranged to bring the dozen asylum-seekers from Cyprus to Italy in the coming weeks. The Cypriot Interior Ministry had previously thanked Pope Francis and Holy See for plans to relocate 50 people, saying it was a recognition of Cyprus's inability to continue to absorb an influx of migrants.
The ministry said that two Cameroonian migrants who have been stranded in the UN-manned buffer zone that runs along the divided island for six months would be among those relocated to Italy.
In 2016, Pope Francis famously brought a dozen Syrian refugees home with him aboard the papal plane on his return from a visit to the island of Lesbos in Greece. The Pope will continue on to Greece on Saturday where he will stay for a further two days.
It is not clear whether more than 12 people would be transferred to Italy – the Vatican did not immediately respond when asked about the discrepancy in numbers, although AP reported that Cyprus's Interior Minister Nicos Nouris said arrangements had been made to transfer 50 in total.
Watch - Pope criticises 'disease' of ignoring migrants
The small island nation is home to the largest concentration of asylum-seekers per capita among the EU countries and has repeatedly called for international assistance in helping it cope with a steady influx of people seeking asylum. It recently asked the European Commission to allow it to stop processing asylum claims after an almost 40 per cent increase in migrant arrivals in the first 10 months of 2021 compared with all of last year.
During the final event in Cyprus, Pope Francis referred to the problems the country was facing and recognised that governments are unable to take in everyone and that “we have to understand the limits”.
Nevertheless, he made it clear that countries had a moral obligation to accept those who are fleeing war, hatred and oppression.
“He who comes asking for freedom, bread, help, fraternity and joy, who is fleeing hatred, finds himself in front of a hatred which is called barbed wire,” the Pope said.
“May the Lord awaken the conscience of all of us in front of all these things. We cannot be silent and look away at this culture of indifference.”
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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1947
Ferrari’s road-car company is formed and its first badged car, the 125 S, rolls off the assembly line
1962
250 GTO is unveiled
1969
Fiat becomes a Ferrari shareholder, acquiring 50 per cent of the company
1972
The Fiorano circuit, Ferrari’s racetrack for development and testing, opens
1976
First automatic Ferrari, the 400 Automatic, is made
1987
F40 launched
1988
Enzo Ferrari dies; Fiat expands its stake in the company to 90 per cent
2002
The Enzo model is announced
2010
Ferrari World opens in Abu Dhabi
2011
First four-wheel drive Ferrari, the FF, is unveiled
2013
LaFerrari, the first Ferrari hybrid, arrives
2014
Fiat Chrysler announces the split of Ferrari from the parent company
2015
Ferrari launches on Wall Street
2017
812 Superfast unveiled; Ferrari celebrates its 70th anniversary
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The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
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