Criticism Of Migrant Returns And Defending Refugees, Pope Francis: I Hear Your Cry

Pope Francis (Wikimedia Commons/Xonn)

JAKARTA - Pope Francis urged countries not to send migrants back to unsafe countries such as Libya, where many suffer from violent and inhumane conditions similar to those in concentration camps.

Pope Francis made this call in his Sunday blessing, as European Union leaders are struggling to resolve differences over the handling of immigrants.

"We must put an end to the return of migrants to unsafe countries," he said, citing "thousands of migrants, refugees and others in need of protection in Libya".

Pope Francis said priority should be given to rescue at sea, orderly landings, prison alternatives and regular passage to immigration and asylum procedures.

In addition, Pope Francis also called on the international community to "keep promises" to find lasting solutions to manage migration flows in Libya and throughout the Mediterranean.

"Many of these men, women and children (in Libya) have been subjected to inhumane violence," he said.

"How many of those sent home suffer! There are real 'lagers' there," he explained, using a German word common in Italy when referring to concentration camps.

"I have never forgotten you. I heard your cries," Pope Francis said.

To note, Pope Francis was speaking a day after the final hearing of a publicized trial in Sicily, where former interior minister Matteo Salvini, leader of Italy's far-right League party, faces kidnapping charges for refusing to let migrant boats dock in the country in 2019.

Separately, this month the United Nations human rights office demanded an investigation into what it called "unnecessary and disproportionate" force by Libyan security forces to detain African migrants, shooting dead some of those who tried to flee.

Meanwhile, the European Union has tightened asylum rules and its external borders, since more than a million refugees and migrants reached Europe across the Mediterranean six years ago, breaking deals with countries like Turkey and Libya for people to live elsewhere along the global route.