Myanmar’s anti-coup protesters decry ASEAN consensus
YANGON (UCAN): Anti-coup protesters and activists in Myanmar denounced the consensus reached on April 24 at a special ASEAN summit as not reflecting the people’s wishes.
The General Strike Committee of Nationalities said the results of the regional bloc’s summit in Jakarta, Indonesia, would not solve the political crisis in the beleaguered country.
“It will not be able to solve Myanmar’s crisis and will be a major obstacle to building a federal democratic union that the people have longed for,” it said in a statement on April 26.
The ASEAN reached a five-point consensus was reached at the summit to end violence, seek constructive dialogue among all parties, appoint a special envoy to facilitate dialogue, provide humanitarian aid and arrange a visit by the envoy to Myanmar.
However, it didn’t mention the release of political prisoners detained since the February 1 coup that overthrew a democratically elected government.
The 10-member bloc was also criticised for its invitation to Myanmese junta leader, Min Aung Hlaing, who has played a leading role in rights violations against civilians including murder, arbitrary arrests and torture.
Priests arrested after bishop-designate shot in South Sudan
VATICAN (CNS): Gunmen broke into the home of Bishop-designate Christian Carlassare of Rumbek, South Sudan, shot him in both legs and fled, according to Church news reports. The attack occurred shortly after midnight April 26.
The 43-year-old Comboni missionary is reported to be in stable condition after emergency surgery at a local hospital and was slated toto be transferred to a hospital in Nairobi, Kenya, for a transfusion and further medical care, according to Fides.
“Do not pray for me but for the people of Rumbek who are suffering more than me,” Bishop Carlassare said in a statement published the Comboni mission website, Nigrizia.it.
Father James Oyet Latansio, general secretary of the South Sudan Council of Churches, said that local priests were arrested in connection with the attack and are suspected to have been part of the network and conspiracy that led to the incident.
Pakistan archbishop urges vaccination
LAHORE (UCAN): “Do not be afraid of rumours regarding the vaccine. The government is trying to save us all from corona. May God make you, your families and others a source to save others,” Archbishop Sebastian Shaw of Lahore, Pakistan, said in a pastoral letter on April 24 encouraging people to get their Covid-19 vaccinations.
People over 40 were able to register for vaccination starting from April 27, according to a tweet from the country’s National Command Operation Centre, which noted that more than 1.8 million people had been vaccinated in Pakistan so far.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani army deployed troops in 16 cities with high positivity rates to assist the civil administration in enforcement of recommended prevention measures amid a third wave of Covid-19 infections.
Vatican approves strengthening safeguarding studies
ROME (CNS): The Centre for Child Protection at Rome’s Pontifical Gregorian University has been transformed into a Vatican-approved academic institute with its own faculty and ability to award advanced academic degrees.
Starting September 1, the university’s centre will become the Institute of Anthropology, offering interdisciplinary studies on human dignity and care and expanding its scope in research, the university said in a press release on April 27.
The Vatican Congregation for Catholic Education approved the change April 15, allowing the centre to broaden its work, develop its own academic faculty and award a licentiate in safeguarding and a doctorate in anthropology, in addition to the current diploma in safeguarding.
The university’s rector, Jesuit Father Nuno da Silva Gonçalves, said, “With this decision, our university reiterates and intensifies its commitment to the work of protecting minors and vulnerable people and supporting safe environments which promote respect for human dignity.”
The new institute will also “deepen the interdisciplinary dimension of education and research, recognised by all as fundamental to addressing issues surrounding abuse and its prevention,” he noted.
