Vatican City, Mar 17, 2021 / 06:00 am
Pope Francis made an emotional appeal Wednesday for an end to violence against protesters in Burma.
“Once again and with great sadness, I feel the urgency to speak about the tragic situation in Myanmar, where many people, mostly young people, are losing their lives to give hope to their country,” Pope Francis said at the end of his general audience on March 17.
“I also kneel in the streets of Myanmar and say: ‘stop the violence.’ I too stretch out my arms and say: ‘may dialogue prevail.’”
The pope made reference to a striking image circulating around social media this month of a Catholic nun in Burma kneeling before police, begging them not to use violent force against people protesting the sudden military coup which overtook the country on Feb. 1.