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| Ethiopians rally against ISIS in Addis Ababa on 22/04/15 |
The Catholic Bishops of Ethiopia have asked Human traffickers and their agents to stop risking young people’s lives by smuggling the youth to cross boarders as an option for a better life abroad.
In their statement, the Bishops strongly condemned the killings of young Christian Ethiopian migrants in Libya and pleaded with brokers of human trafficking business to stop tricking the youth to leave their country through illegal means.
“To those young persons who are still planning to migrate from their country, even though it is your right to move from one country to another, we ask you not to travel without making sure that your country of destination provides you protection or fall in the traps of the human traffickers and travel without the necessary legal documents,” read the statement adding that “Moreover, we ask the youth to consider the option of working and prospering in your own country and drop the idea of migrating to another country where there is no safety.”
At the Press Conference H.E Berhaneyesus Cardinal Souraphiel, C.M., Metropolitan Archbishop of Addis Ababa, President of CBCE informed the journalists about the condolence message from the Holy Father, Pope Francis to His Holiness Abune Mathias, the Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahdo Church.
Cardinal Berhaneyesus also said that the Catholic Church has been praying for the souls of the deceased migrants that they may rest in peace and to all the bereaved family members to obtain consolation from God our Father.
There have been prayers in all the parishes throughout the country from the moment the sad news of killings was heard. The Catholic Church in Ethiopia celebrated Holy Mass on April 24, 2015 Friday Morning for all deceased migrant Ethiopians at the Nativity Catholic Cathedral in the presence of all Catholic Bishops of the conference presided by His Eminence Cardinal Berhaneyesus, C.M.
Similarly, the Ethiopian Inter-religious council, in a joint statement from all its member religious denominations condemned the atrocious acts of killing innocent young Ethiopians. Also on that occasion His Eminence Cardinal Berhaneyesus, C.M., said that the departed children of Ethiopia will be remembered always as martyrs. The Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church His Holiness Patriarch Matthias said, “We should all unanimously condemn this terrorist act.
The President of the Ethiopian Islamic Supreme Council Sheik Mohammed Amin said that such act goes against the teaching of Islam. “The Holy Quran instructs us to respect and protect human life, moreover, the Prophet Mohamed has said we should respect Ethiopia for the great favor she did to his first followers, he did not say Muslims, Christians, White or Black. What was done to young Christian Ethiopians in Libya was against that.”
The Ethiopian Peoples’ Representative Council has declared a 3 days national mourning period which was ending on 24 April, 2015. On April 22 a Mass rally was organized in Addis Ababa where residents of the City in their thousands raised their voice against the killings of Ethiopian Migrants.
The Bishops called on the young people of Ethiopia to consider exploring all the available opportunities of development in their own country, before deciding to take on migration as an option for a better life abroad. “We ask the youth to consider the option of working and prospering in your own country and abandon the idea of migrating to another country where there is no safety,” said the Bishops in their statement.
By Makeda Yohannes; ECC - Social Communications and Public Relations Officer