London, England, Jun 1, 2007 / 15:45 pm
Presidents of the Catholic Bishops’ Conferences of the world’s leading industrial countries have written to the Group of 8 leaders to urge them to take “bold action on global poverty” ahead of the G8 summit in Germany next week (Rostock, 6-8 June).
The Bishops’ Conferences of England & Wales have joined the French, Germans, Americans and Russians among others to call on their political leaders to honor the commitments they made in Gleneagles in 2005.
Those commitments are commended in the letter which was signed by Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, president of the Bishops’ Conference of England & Wales and sent to Prime Minister Tony Blair in England. However, the Cardinal reminded the G8 leaders of their ‘moral obligation’ to fulfill their promises:
“We urge you to act out of the moral obligation that we all share for the well-being of every human person, but also because replacing despair with hope in Africa will lead to a more secure world for all nations.”