Holy See calls for united efforts to combat modern slavery

By Christopher Wells

On the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, Archbishop Juan Antonio Cruz Serrano reminded the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) that slavery is not a thing of the past, but is still happening today.

“If we close our eyes and ears to this phenomenon today,” he said, “we, too, will be complicit in it.”

The Holy See’s Permanent Observer to the OAS told the body’s Permanent Council that the history of slavery and the slave trade must always be kept in mind, but without allowing that memory to desensitize us to the reality of modern slavery.

Recalling the words of Pope Francis, he said that slavery “objectifies” men and women, who are reduced to “things” that are valued in proportion to their usefulness to others.

Eradicating the scourge of modern slavery

Archbishop Cruz Serrano noted the Council was meeting during the Eighth Inter-American Week for People of African Descent in the Americas, which, he said, “helps us recognize the gravity of these facts and the scope of this reality” of modern slavery.

This should provide motivation to continue raising awareness about the issue, and to better coordinate efforts to combat human trafficking. These efforts, the Archbishop said, “should be unanimous ... in order to eradicate this scourge.”

It is therefore necessary, he continued, “to launch processes to achieve the peaceful harmony that is required between peoples, in which the recognition of human dignity occupies a central place.”

He assured his audience of the Holy See’s commitment to “moral, social, and spiritual education” that incorporates the experiences of the most marginalized – including victims of human trafficking – who are often unseen and unheard.

Finally, Archbishop Cruz Serrano affirmed the Holy See’s commitment “to guaranteeing adequate conditions of education and formation in order to generate a more just society, ‘in the fraternal recognition of our common humanity.”