Cardinal Michael Czerny

Vatican official voices support for German abbess who sheltered refugees
- Jul 31, 2020
Cardinal Michael Czerny, Pope Francis’ point man on migrants, has voiced support for a German abbess facing trial for sheltering refugees.

By Sarah MacDonald
Czerny: Pandemic made people grasp role of migrants as essential workers
- Jul 31, 2020
The coronavirus pandemic “opened our eyes to the peripheries in our midst,” specifically to the contribution of migrant workers in essential services such as health care, transportation, sanitation and agriculture, said Cardinal Michael Czerny.

By Sarah MacDonald
Papal aide sees whole drama of trafficking in one Sierra Leone woman
- Jun 19, 2020
Augusta Ngombu had been orphaned as a child. Exploited and abused by a family member, she fled her home and ended up as a prostitute in the streets in Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, where over 50 percent of the population lives in extreme poverty.

By Inés San Martín

As Italy grapples with kidnap victim’s conversion to Islam, pope urges end to prejudice
- May 15, 2020
As Italy is currently torn by the case of a young woman who apparently converted to Islam during her captivity with Islamic extremists in Kenya, Pope Francis in a message for migrants and refugees has urged an end to fear and prejudice.

By Elise Ann Allen
Pope indirectly backs measure to protect exploited farm workers
- May 14, 2020
“The invisible ones will be less invisible,” said Teresa Bellanova, Italy’s agriculture minister, on Wednesday. “Those brutally exploited in fields or false cooperatives will have a residence permit. The state wins, [because it’s] stronger than criminality.”

By Inés San Martín
Vatican highlights plight of internally displaced migrants during digital press conference
- May 5, 2020
On Tuesday the Vatican held its first digital press conference for journalists on a new set of pastoral guidelines on care for people who have been internally displaced.

By Elise Ann Allen