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| DECEPTIVE. Mine tailings now cover the once pristine beaches of Calancan Bay in Sta. Cruz, Marinduque. Photo courtesy of tonywells82 |
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has sent his greetings to representatives, laborers and families involved in the Mining Industry on the occasion of a Vatican organized conference focusing on the ethical issues involved in the sector.
On behalf of the Pope, Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone welcomed the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace’s Day of Reflection on environmental and social questions relevant to the mining industry.
He described the initiative as “important” because not only did it bring together leaders of different faiths of many multinational corporations, it was “the first occasion in which senior mining executives have come together, close to the Successor of Peter, to reflect on the importance of their human and environmental responsibilities… to make a serious examination of conscience on what must be done so that their industry may offer a constant positive contribution to integral human development.”
Leading executives from some of the world’s most important mining companies participated: African Rainbow Minerals, Anglo American, AngloGold Ashanti, Areva, Baker Hughes, BHP Billiton, China Minmetals Corporation, Curis Resources, Fortescue, MMG, Newmont, Rio Tinto and Zamin Resources.
Other participants in the Day of Reflection included several Church representatives expert in issues of mining, a delegate of the Secretariat of State, the International Council on Mining and Metals, the World Gold Council, Caritas Internationalis and Oxfam America.
In his message, the Pope stressed that the day of reflection takes on particular importance because not only did it bring together leaders of many multinational corporations involved in this sector but above all because it is the first occasion in which senior mining executives have come together "to reflect on the importance of their human and environmental responsibilities. In other words, they wish to make a serious examination of conscience on what must be done so that their industry may offer a constant positive contribution to integral human development."
"The extraction industries are seen, not always without reason, as unjustly exploiting resources and local populations, resorting even to slavery and to the forced removal of entire populations. An ancient proverb of the People of Israel says, “The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children’s teeth are set on edge” (Jer 31:29). This warning is perennially valid; it not only alludes to the complexity of ethical questions, difficult to resolve with one answer that is valid for all, but also reminds us of the seriousness of our human actions. Mining, like many other industrial activities, has ecological and social consequences which go well beyond national borders and pass from one generation to the next," the Pope said in his message.
Also read:Mining and Environment: Marinduque is 'pushed to the wall'
