Philip Pullella and Lefteris Mamadimas

LESBOS (Greece) -Pope Francis, during a Sunday visit to Lesbos in Greece, condemned the exploitation and political use of migrants. He called the worldwide indifference to their plight “shipwreck for civilisation.”

Francis stopped at the Mavrovouni camp which houses approximately 2,300 people and greeted a number of them, giving high fives to one young African boy, as well as wishing many others a happy New Year.

The island is one of the most important entry points for migrants. He visited it in 2016, and brought back 12 Syrian refugees. He was disappointed that so little has changed since.

The Mediterranean was a place where many people died crossing the Atlantic from North Africa to Europe. It is still “a dark cemetery without gravestones”.

We must stop this destruction of civilisation, please! He said.

Francis chastised those who exploit the crisis of migration for political purposes for the second day in a row.

He said that it is simple to instill fear in others and stir up public opinion.

“The far-reaching causes need to be addressed, not those who are poor and have to pay the consequences. They can even be used for propaganda,” he stated.

It is constructed of many prefabricated structures that look similar to shipping containers as well as smaller plastic ones.

ERA OF WALLS and BARBED WIRED

These spaces are like streets in an abandoned village, where everyone lives in uncertainty. The home of an Afghan couple was the perfect place for baby tricycles and infant carriages.

As he sat on a bench under a tent overlooking the sea, the pope heard Christian Tango Mukaya (a Congolese refugee of 30 years) speak to him. The couple had been staying at the camp together for over a year. Since he arrived, he hasn’t had any contact with his wife or another child.

Mavrovouni, whose perimeter is surrounded by cement, barbed wire and the sea, replaced the notorious Moria camp that burned down last year https://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-migrants-greece-lesbos-idUSKBN26002M.

At the end of his morning trip, the pope visited many families.

Francis stated that it was distressing to learn from European leaders that they wanted to put up barriers and wires to stop immigrants entering.

He stated, “We’re in the age of barsbed wire and walls.”

Poland’s prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki has called for the EU to jointly finance a border wall https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/polish-police-say-group-50-migrants-broke-through-belarus-border-2021-11-14 to stem the tide of migrants coming from the Middle East through Belarus into Poland.

Although Mavrovouni’s situation is grim, the improvement is significant over Moria which was decried by human rights groups for its poor and cramped conditions.

For migrants fleeing poverty, war or persecution in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Asia the most important entry point to the European Union has been Greece. As a result of crossing from Turkey on boats, thousands of migrants arrived on Lesbos’s beaches in 2015.

Joshue was an 18-year old refugee from Congo who welcomed the visit of Pope Francis.

It’s not as if he is hearing it from far away, but he was there to witness our lives and to learn about the local circumstances. This gives us strength, hope, and a sense of security knowing such a leader thinks about us,” he stated.