Italy Pope expresses concern about the state of democracy

Pope Francis has expressed his concern about the state of democracy in many countries. "Let's be honest: in today's world, democracy is not in good health," said the head of the Catholic Church at an event in the northern Italian city of Trieste on Sunday. At the same time, he called on people to take part in democratic processes, for example by going to the polls. The Pope said: "Indifference is a cancer of democracy." He expressly warned against the "lure of populism".

Francis was speaking at the end of a week-long series of events in which the Catholic Church had focused in particular on social issues. In front of around 1,200 participants, he said: "Everyone must feel part of a community project. No one should feel useless." Behind the distancing from social reality often lies indifference. The Pope did not go into detail about which countries his criticism of the state of democracy referred to.

Francis also expressed concern about the declining voter turnout in many countries. "Democracy demands that conditions are created so that everyone can express themselves." He expressly appealed to the members of the Catholic Church to also take responsibility in politics. "We cannot be satisfied with a private faith," he said. "In particular, this means having the courage to make proposals for justice and peace in the public debate."

The 87-year-old pontiff, who is in poor health, has not been on a longer trip abroad for almost a year. In recent weeks, however, he has visited various cities in Italy, including Venice, Verona and now Trieste. In addition, Francis - who is also head of state of the Vatican - took part in the summit of the Group of Seven (G7) major democratic industrialized nations in southern Italy in mid-June.

In September, he plans to travel to Southeast Asia and the Pacific region for twelve days, his longest trip abroad to date. Stops include Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore. Shortly afterwards, a trip to Luxembourg and Belgium is on the agenda.

SDA