An ethical approach to development needed for all countries, developed and developing, says Pope

After 27 years of civil war Angola is struggling hard to fully establish peace through a process of national reconciliation and reconstruction, something which the Pope praised. Hope in it is supported by international bodies and agencies, so that people, “armed with integrity, magnanimity and compassion,” can “transform this continent, freeing your people from the scourges of greed, violence and unrest and leading them along the path marked with the principles indispensable to every modern civic democracy: respect and promotion of human rights, transparent governance, an independent judiciary, a free press, a civil service of integrity, a properly functioning network of schools and hospitals, and—most pressing—a determination born from the conversion of hearts to excise corruption once and for all.”

This is the “ethical approach to development” which the “peoples of this continent are rightly” calling for; not simply “more programmes and protocols, but [. . .] a deep-seated, lasting conversion of hearts to sincere solidarity. Their plea to those serving in politics, public service, international agencies, and multinational companies is simply this: stand alongside us in a profoundly human way; accompany us, and our families and our communities!”

As for the family, the traditional foundation of African societies, “strains [. . .] as we all know, are many indeed: anxiety and ignominy caused by poverty, unemployment, disease and displacement, to mention but a few. Particularly disturbing is the crushing yoke of discrimination that women and girls so often endure, not to mention the unspeakable practice of sexual violence and exploitation which causes such humiliation and trauma. I must also mention a further area of grave concern: the policies of those who, claiming to improve the ‘social edifice’, threaten its very foundations. How bitter the irony of those who promote abortion as a form of ‘maternal’ healthcare! How disconcerting the claim that the termination of life is a matter of reproductive health (cf Maputo Protocol, art. 14)!”

For its part, the Church will always stand “alongside the poorest of this continent. I wish to assure each of you that for her part, through diocesan initiatives, through the innumerable educational, healthcare and social works of Religious Orders, and through the development programmes of Caritas and other agencies, the Church will continue to do all she can to support families—including those suffering the harrowing effects of HIV/Aids—and to uphold the equal dignity of women and men, realized in harmonious complementarity. The Christian spiritual journey is one of daily conversion. To this the Church invites all leaders so that the path opened for all humanity will be one of truth, integrity, respect and compassion.”