AMERICA/MEXICO - Peace cannot be built because of domestic violence and the disintegration of the social fabric

Monday, 27 March 2023 violence women social situation politics local churches peace

Desde la fe

MEXICO

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Mexico City (Agenzia Fides) - According to the Mexican National Institute of Public Health and the United Nations Children's Fund, only 3 out of 10 children are brought up in an environment free from violence. This means that 70% of Mexican children live with some form of physical, psychological or symbolic violence. Other data come from the survey on social cohesion for the prevention of violence and delinquency by INEGI: 50% of young people aged 12 to 29 live in situations of permanent conflict. Of this percentage, 44.2% avoid living with their loved ones because of these conflicting situations, which promotes the consumption of addictive substances among children and adolescents.
These statistics are quoted in the latest issue of the Catholic weekly of the Archdiocese of Mexico, "Desde la fe", which draws attention to domestic violence. Last week, the editorial reports, the churches of Mexico experienced the "Monthly Day of Prayer" which, on this occasion, aimed to invoke God for all those who suffer from domestic violence and the disintegration of the social fabric. "The Virgin of Guadalupe was also asked to enlighten and guide families so they can continue to build the peace they yearn for".
The "Monthly Days of Prayer" were born following the assassination of the two Jesuit priests in June 2022 (see Fides, 22 and 24/6/2022), at the initiative of the Mexican Episcopal Conference (CEM), the Society of Jesus in Mexico and the Conference of Major Superiors of Religious of Mexico (CIRM), in order to raise awareness of the reality that peace, as a gift from God, is built in all areas.
Regarding violence against women, the Mexican Catholic weekly stresses that the number of women beaten in the home is alarming. They are the main victims of domestic violence, with 70.7% of cases, according to the National System for the Integral Development of the Family. "For many women, home is more of a war camp where they suffer serious injuries of all kinds, where it is easier to commit suicide as an apparent way of escaping their pain and where, unfortunately, some die. because of the brutal blows inflicted by their partner. Domestic violence is an extremely complex phenomenon, and the solution therefore requires multiple approaches and joint interdisciplinary work by various social, political and religious bodies".
Quoting the words of the Auxiliary Bishop of Mexico, Luis Manuel Pérez Raygoza, the weekly invites us, as a society, to take care of our families, to denounce the people and situations that favor the growth of the problem, to strengthen education, to demand the administration of justice, respect for human rights and attention to victims.
"As a predominantly Catholic people - concludes the editorial - we can also make a significant contribution by proclaiming and offering the only force capable of healing and transforming hearts at the root: the love of God, and by encouraging as much as possible the perpetrators to open themselves to the action of God and heal from the depths of the heart". (SL) (Agenzia Fides, 27/3/2023)