Archbishop of Oaxaca renews call for solution to crisis in the region

Mexico City, Mexico, Nov 21, 2006 / 22:00 pm

Archbishop Jose Luis Chavez Botello of Oaxaca has renewed his call for a solution to the crisis that has gripped the region in recent months.

In a statement, the archbishop stressed the need to uncover “as much as possible, the truth of the facts,” because “we are frequently given partial information” that favors one side or another.  “This is not the way to move forward in the truth or to solve the conflict.  Here the media has a fundamental responsibility,” he said.

Archbishop Chavez stressed that in order to understand Oaxaca’s diverse ethnic and cultural makeup, “our foundations and identity must be strengthened so that diversity becomes a source of harmony and enrichment rather than something considered as a danger or a pretext for confrontation.”

Oaxaca, he continued, needs leadership that is able to give voice to all sectors of society and is at the same time “capable of really listening to the needs of the people and meeting them.”

While he acknowledged that the region needs fresh leadership, he also criticized certain groups that “only offer protests and complaints and don’t have any constructive proposals.”

Archbishop Chavez also decried the lack of attention given to “fundamental values” such as life, truth, justice, the common good and unity.  When these values and principles are ignored, he said, laws are changed out of self-interest and social mores begin to deteriorate.

He stressed that the Church in the region would continue to work for the good of society “through prayer, solidarity and responsible collaboration,” and that despite the attacks against her, the Church “will continue to work for peace and justice without taking sides in the conflict.”