The Archdiocese of Mexico through its Archbishop, Cardinal Norberto
Rivera Carrera, condemned the cowardly attack which took place in the
city of Monterrey in Nuevo Leon, which caused the death of over 50
people.
“We are talking about innocent people of civil society in addition to
the large number of victims of cruelty and viciousness of organized
crime, which like a whip punishes our poor country”, this is what is
read in the statement regarding the tragedy, of which a copy was sent to
Fides.
According to the local press, at least 53 people were killed in
the fire lit by armed men in a casino in Monterrey, in northern Mexico.
The Church has several times raised her voice against the violence
that affects Mexico and the continuing threats of armed groups.
A few
days ago, the Archdiocese had already denounced in an editorial in the
weekly “Desde La Fe”, the situation of many priests across the country:
“There are many priests in Mexico who live under the constant threat of
drug dealing, because of their work within organizations that defend
human rights or for denouncing abuses and crimes of drug dealers.
Particular outrage, in June 2009, was provoked by the murder of a
Catholic priest and two seminarians while they were leaving a church in
southern Mexico. They had dared to denounce violence against the
faithful on behalf of a group of drug dealers. The clergy is more
exposed in rural areas, where dealers rage and the state does not
succeed in enforcing the law. According to Manuel Corral, secretary for
public relations for the Mexican Episcopal Conference, at least a
thousand of the fifteen thousand priests in Mexico have been threatened
indirectly, and at least three hundred directly”.
The statement, which was published yesterday, also condemns the
murder of the journalist Humberto Millán Salazar, in the city of
Culiacan, in Sinaloa, and asks all the faithful to pray for those who
have died because of violence.
At the same time it underlines the
importance to live in justice and peace, so much desired by the country.