Leading Vatican diplomat deplores violations of children’s rights, including enslavement, abortion
October 15, 2024
» Continue to this story on Holy See Mission
CWN Editor's Note: Addressing a UN meeting, a leading Vatican diplomat deplored violations of children’s rights.
“160 million children worldwide are subjected to forced child labor, the worst forms of which include enslavement,” said Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, apostolic nuncio and Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations.
“They are victims of and forced to fight in armed conflicts, exposed to sexual violence and abuse, and fall prey to human trafficking,” he continued. “It is shameful that this exploitation continues to be a part of our global economy while damaging children’s health, education, and future prospects.”
Archbishop Caccia also decried child marriage; “prenatal sex selection and female infanticide, which end the lives of girls at the earliest stages”; “abortion, which ends the lives of millions of children every year”; and surrogacy, which “deprives children of their mothers.”
He added:
The primary rights and responsibilities of parents should be properly understood as reflecting a duty of care which is in the best interests of the child. It is deeply regrettable that the importance of the family is increasingly being challenged, despite the recognition in international law that it should be afforded the “widest possible protection and assistance.”The above note supplements, highlights, or corrects details in the original source (link above). About CWN news coverage.
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