AMERICA/PUERTO RICO - Mgr. Gonzalez Nieves to the United Nations: "I come for my people who are suffering"

Friday, 11 December 2015 economy bishops poverty

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San Juan (Agenzia Fides) - San Juan's Archbishop, His Exc. Mgr. Roberto González Nieves, O.F.M. called on Puerto Rico's government and debt holders to negotiate a comprehensive solution to the island's debt crisis in a United Nations speech on Tuesday, December 8th.
"I don’t come to this table as an expert or even as a creditor, I come to this conversation out of deep concern for my people who are suffering", stated the Archbishop in his speech. The Archdiocese is among many of the territory's religious institutions that also owns Puerto Rico's bonds.
"The debt is unpayable and no matter what the government of Puerto Rico or certain creditors might say there is a very real humanitarian crisis".
Even the Governor calls the debt "unpayable", as Puerto Rico faces another billion dollar payment on the first of January.
The Archbishop's speech came at an event organized by the UN Conference of Trade and Development on the impact of so-called "vulture funds": firms that buy a government's debt cheaply and then demand full repayment. (CE) (Agenzia Fides 11/12/2015)