(Vatican Radio) Caring for millions of migrants on the move, within their own countries or forced to flee their native lands. That’s the mission of the Geneva based International Catholic Migration Commission, or ICMC, founded in 1951 as a response to the massive human displacement caused by the Second World War.The Commission’s new secretary general, Mgr Robert Vitillo was in Rome last week, together with other staff members to present their 2015 annual report focused on the practical assistance, resettlement programmes and policy work carried out, especially in response to the conflicts in the Middle East.To find out more about the kind of support the ICMC provides, particularly to families uprooted by the war in Syria, Philippa Hitchen spoke to operations director, Walter Brill and to senior operations officer Cristina Palazzo….Listen: Brill says the ICMC has been working for many years in Syria, in close collaboration with a local partner, Terre des Ho...
(Vatican Radio) Caring for millions of migrants on the move, within their own countries or forced to flee their native lands. That’s the mission of the Geneva based International Catholic Migration Commission, or ICMC, founded in 1951 as a response to the massive human displacement caused by the Second World War.
The Commission’s new secretary general, Mgr Robert Vitillo was in Rome last week, together with other staff members to present their 2015 annual report focused on the practical assistance, resettlement programmes and policy work carried out, especially in response to the conflicts in the Middle East.
To find out more about the kind of support the ICMC provides, particularly to families uprooted by the war in Syria, Philippa Hitchen spoke to operations director, Walter Brill and to senior operations officer Cristina Palazzo….
Listen:
Brill says the ICMC has been working for many years in Syria, in close collaboration with a local partner, Terre des Hommes Syria. He talks about the difficulties for those working in the war torn country, including shelling, water shortages, power cuts and road blocks which hamper access to beneficiaries.
Cristina Palazzo explains what kind of assistance is provided for Internally Displaced People, including mattresses,heaters and other items to help people survive the cold winter months, money to help them pay rents and health care, especially pre and post-natal care for pregnant women and their babies. She says the ICMC reaches between 10.000 and 20.000 internally displaced people or refugees, both in Syrian and the surrounding countries.
Brill also talks about the resettlement work coordinated by a regional director in Istanbul, despite the difficulties caused by the recent attempted coup in Turkey. He says last year some 5.000 people were resettled to the United States and the ICMC hopes to increase that number this year, despite the tightening security vetting and negative perception of refugees that comes as a result of the recent terror attacks.
Chuck Robbins, the chief executive of the multinational digital communications conglomerate Cisco, signs the Rome Call for AI Ethics, a document by the Pontifical Academy for Life, on April 24, 2024, at the Vatican. / Credit: Vatican MediaRome Newsroom, Apr 24, 2024 / 11:06 am (CNA).The CEO of Cisco Systems signed the Vatican's artificial intelligence ethics pledge on Wednesday, becoming the latest technology giant to join the Church's call for ethical and responsible use of AI.Chuck Robbins, the chief executive of the multinational digital communications conglomerate, met privately with Pope Francis on April 24 before signing the Rome Call for AI Ethics, a document by the Pontifical Academy for Life. Pope Francis meets with Chuck Robbins, the chief executive of multinational digital communications conglomerate Cisco, on April 24, 2024, at the Vatican. Credit: Vatican MediaThe document, first published by the pontifical academy in February 2020, has previously been signed ...
null / Credit: Brian A Jackson / ShutterstockCNA Staff, Apr 24, 2024 / 13:35 pm (CNA).Catholics Charities Corporation in Ohio was found partially negligent this week in the 2017 death of a 5-year-old boy who was being supervised by one of the organization's caseworkers at the time he died.A jury in Cuyahoga County ruled in the wrongful death suit that the Catholic charity group was 8% responsible for Jordan Rodriguez's September 2017 death, local media reported. Rodriguez's body was discovered buried in his mother's backyard three months after he died.The boy's mother and her boyfriend earlier pleaded guilty to several charges stemming from his death, including involuntary manslaughter. Jordan was developmentally disabled and incapable of speaking.In the civil wrongful death trial this week, Catholic Charities Corporation was ordered to pay $960,000 into Jordan Rodriguez's estate. Several ...
null / ShutterstockCNA Staff, Apr 24, 2024 / 14:15 pm (CNA).As euthanasia and assisted suicide are legalized in more jurisdictions throughout the U.S. and the rest of the world, one Catholic-focused ministry is promoting end-of-life resources that the group's founder says will help Catholics finish their earthly journeys while remaining faithful.Aging with Dignity, a nonprofit that for years has been promoting end-of-life support in line with Church teaching, announced this month the release of "Finishing Life Faithfully," a booklet that "makes complex end-of-life decisions easier." The materials address "basic questions" on how to approach end-of-life topics such as pain management, feeding tubes, and other matters surrounding death.The document "summarizes the Catholic Church's guidance on end-of-life decision-making and the ethical considerations involved and helps patients and families better understand these teachings and follow them," the group said this month.Jim Towey, ...