HOLY SEE ADDRESSES U.N. MEETING ON HUMAN SETTLEMENTS

VATICAN CITY, JUN 9, 2001 (VIS) - Msgr. Francis Assisi Chullikatt, head of the Holy See delegation to the 25th Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly on the theme of human settlements, addressed the meeting yesterday. His talk was published today.

Recalling that five years ago the U.N. met in Istanbul for the Second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements, he said: "The Holy See recognized the importance of that meeting, especially regarding the realization of the right to adequate shelter for all persons and their families, along with a better understanding of the inseparable connection between sustainable development and human settlements development."
In looking back over the past five years, said Msgr. Chullikatt, "we are reminded that human beings, every woman, man and child living today and who will be born tomorrow, who constitute the human family, are and must always be considered the subject of our work."

He stated that "the Holy See welcomes the adoption of the 'Declaration on Cities and Other Human Settlements in the New Millennium' during this Special Session," then added: "The Special Session cannot overshadow the fact that so many people remain homeless or, as victims of armed conflicts, natural disaster or economic turmoil, have been forced from their homes, their livelihoods and, in many cases separated from their families."

The Holy See delegate stated that the "Special Session must spark a renewal of the world's commitment to solidarity ... and to a concern for the dignity of each member of the human family."

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