As Father Fabio Baggio, CS, Undersecretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, explained, "With it, Pope Francis intends to promote renewed reflection on a right that has yet to be codified at the international level: the right not to have to migrate, that is, the right to live in peace and dignity in one's own country."
In the face of the evident increase in forced migration in recent years, the Holy Father believed to emphasize once again how important it is that all migration be the result of a free, informed, and pondered choice. "Guaranteeing freedom of choice whether to migrate or to stay is also the responsibility of the international community within the framework of a global co-responsibility directed to a common good, which is not limited to national borders. The development of economically poorer countries depends on the capacity for sharing among all countries," Father Baggio continued.
For the Sons of Don Bosco, who from their origins have always had special care for migrants and refugees - very often becoming such because they are constrained by the most disparate adversities -, the Pope's reflection is a stimulus to renew their commitment to this needy portion of society and at the same time to work in all venues so that everywhere in the world the choice to emigrate can be "free, informed and pondered."
The Holy Father's full Message for the 109th World Day of Migrants and Refugees is available here in various languages.
