THE HOLY FATHER has told Indonesia’s new Ambassador to the Holy See that the response to terrorism must not be motivated by hatred or revenge, and warns that “merely punitive or repressive” measures are not sufficient.
Instead, it is necessary to eliminate the causes of terrorism, the Pope said when he received Bambang Prayitno in audience.
Focusing on the subject of terrorism, the pope said that there “is no question that this baneful scourge has grown more virulent in recent years, generating brutal massacres that serve only to exacerbate difficult situations, increase tensions and erode possibilities for peace among peoples and nations”.
He said: “Your own country has unfortunately had firsthand experience of such heinous acts of violence and disregard for the inviolability of innocent human life. Our response must never be one of hatred or revenge. Nor are measures that are merely punitive or repressive sufficient.”