ETHIOPIA: The Dignity of the Poor in the Society must be an Agenda of AMECEA Bishops

Bishops of AMECEA Region have been urged to uphold the human dignity agenda with preferential option for the poor according to the Gospel values and the Catholic Social Teachings.

Presenting the topic: ‘Promoting Human Dignity Towards Meaningful Unity,’ on 18^th July 2018, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC) Secretary General, Very Rev. Dr Charles Kitima said that every human being deserves the basic human needs and respect.

“Promoting human dignity for meaningful unity in AMECEA countries is among the key responsibilities of Church Leaders. The world should understand that every human person has the same dignity regardless of status based on wealth or race,” he said.

He said, “Sometimes the poor are facing violence due to ethnic differences and other causes simply because they are poor. They are marginalized, not respected, not even given security. Our society should be organized in a way that people who are rich and people who are poor have equal dignity.”

Fr Kitima said that Church leaders have moral duty to help the less fortunate attain their dignity as much as they can because they are also created in the image and likeness of God.

He said that it is the duty of the Church in AMECEA to promote the dignity of the poor people who are always neglected because of violence arising due to ethnic or cultural differences.

He urged the Bishops to continue playing their prophetic role against systems that undermine human dignity and the rights of the poor people and vulnerable in our societies. “Economic, Political, or Social activities should not go against human dignity but should help human being to progress in dignity. The real Human Development must be that which enhances and respect human dignity within the community”, he said.

By Sarah Pelaji