Vatican City, 23 January 2014 (VIS) –
Archbishop Silvano M. Tomasi, head of the Holy See delegation, spoke
yesterday at the international conference on Syria taking place in
Montreux, Switzerland. The prelate remarked that “confronted with
the indescribable suffering of the Syrian people, a sense of
solidarity and common responsibility prompts us to engage in a
dialogue which is based on honesty, mutual trust, and concrete steps”
and stressed that dialogue is the only way forward.
“There is no military solution to the
Syrian crisis”, he said. “The Holy See is convinced that violence
leads nowhere but to death, destruction and no future. … The Holy
See renews its urgent appeal to all the parties concerned for the
full and absolute respect for humanitarian law”.
He presented various proposals,
emphasising that “an immediate cease-fire without preconditions and
the end to violence of all kinds should become a priority and the
urgent goal of these negotiations”, to which he added that “all
weapons should be laid down and specific steps should be taken to
stop the flow of arms and arms funding that feed the escalation of
violence and destruction, to leave room for the instruments of
peace”.
Likewise, he commented that the
cessation of hostilities should be accompanied by “increased
humanitarian assistance and the immediate start of reconstruction”,
which should “start together with negotiations and should be
sustained by the generous solidarity of the international community.
In this process, young people should be given a preferential
consideration so that through their employment and work they may
become protagonists for a peaceful and creative future for their
country”.
“Community rebuilding calls for
dialogue and reconciliation sustained by a spiritual dimension. The
Holy See strongly encourages all religious faiths and communities in
Syria to reach a deeper mutual knowledge, a better understanding and
a restoration of trust”.
He continued, “It is important that
regional and international powers favour the ongoing dialogue and
that regional problems be addressed. Peace in Syria could become a
catalyst of peace in other parts of the region, and a model of that
peace that is so urgently needed”.
“Beyond the tragedies of the current
crisis, new opportunities and original solutions for Syria and its
neighbours can come about. … [so that] no-one is forced to leave
his country because of intolerance and the inability to accept
differences. In fact, the equality assured by common citizenship can
allow the individual to express for himself and in community with
others the fundamental values all persons hold indispensable to
sustain their inner identity”.
The archbishop concluded by emphasising
that since the Syrian crisis began, the Holy See has been following
its developments with deep concern and has constantly advocated that
all parties involved commit themselves to the prevention of violence
and to the provision of humanitarian assistance to all victims.
The Holy See observer also referred to
the many occasions on which the Pope has raised his voice “to
remind people of the futility of violence, inviting a negotiated
resolution of problems, calling for a just and equitable
participation of everyone in the life of society”, and highlighted
the convocation by the Holy Father of a Day of Prayer and Fasting for
peace in Syria and the Middle East, which received an overwhelmingly
positive response worldwide. He concluded by remarking that the
culture of encounter and the culture of dialogue are “the only way
to peace”.
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