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Skriven 2005-05-27 08:17:02 av Marc Lewis (1:396/45)
Ärende: Vatican Information Service (Press Release)
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                The following press release is Copyrighted by the
                          Vatican Information Service.
                ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                               VIS-Press releases

CARDINAL LOZANO ADDRESSES WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY

VATICAN CITY, MAY 26, 2005 (VIS) - Made public today was the speech given by
Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragan on May 18 in Geneva, Switzerland at the World
Health Assembly, the supreme decision-making body of the 192-member World
Health Organization (WHO). Cardinal Lozano, president of the Pontifical Council
for Health Care Ministry, headed the Holy See delegation which also included
Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, permanent observer to the Geneva-based United
Nations Office and Specialized Institutions.

Cardinal Lozano conveyed greetings from Pope Benedict XVI who, he said, "is
very concerned about health problems in the world, and offers all his support
and assistance to the world effort to bring health care to everyone, especially
to the most unprotected."

The cardinal went to say that "unfortunately, illnesses, especially infectious
ones, are ever more virulent in the poorest countries that, precisely because
they are poor, do not have the resources to obtain medicine that, thanks to
modern technology, can easily offer some cures. In fact, each year infectious
diseases are responsible for the death of 17 million persons, of whom 90
percent live in developing countries." He noted that in many of these countries
the medicines to cure certain illnesses cannot even be found.

"It is terrible," added the council president, quoting the 2005 World Health
Report on maternal and infant health care, "to note that of the 211 new human
beings who were conceived, there were 46 million induced abortions, 32 who died
prematurely or at birth and only 133 million reached birth and lived."

Cardinal Lozano, in concluding remarks, said that, "as the Holy See is aware of
these and similar problems, John Paul II established the 'Good Samaritan'
Foundation' to help the most needy sick people in the world. The new Pope,
Benedict XVI, with joy, has ratified this foundation. The initial objective of
this foundation has been concretized by buying medicines for the most needy,
and we have already been able to bring aid to the sick of 11 African countries,
one in Asia and another in Latin America."
CON-AVA/WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY/LOZANOVIS 050527 (340)

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