POPE ENCOURAGES ALL TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE FIGHT AGAINST HUNGER, URGES MEDIA TO SPREAD GOSPEL, SOLIDARITY

(May 22, 2006): Pope Benedict XVI lent his support to the Global March Against Child Hunger on Sunday urging «contributions from everyone» to help overcome the scourge of world hunger. Sunday’s march was organized by the UN’s World Food Programme, WFP, which aims to cut in half the world's 300 million chronically starving children by 2015. Speaking during his traditional Sunday midday ‘Regina Coeli’ prayer, the Pope said the U.N. project "seeks to sensitize governments and public opinion on the need for concrete and timely action to guarantee all, particularly children, 'freedom from hunger.'" Pope Benedict called for "concrete and swift" action, particularly in saving hundreds and thousands of people starving in Sudan's conflict-ravaged Darfur region. He called the ongoing violence that has killed nearly 200-thousand people and displaced another 2.5 million, an "urgent and dramatic situation." Food contributions from world donors have lagged behind Darfur's food needs and the WFP earlier this month was forced to cut in half food rations to the region.
Hundreds of thousands of people in more than 100 countries across the globe took to the streets on Sunday, May 21 to let their feet do the talking in the annual march against child hunger. Hunger, WFP says, kills 1 child every 5 seconds. Walkers in 24 time zones across the world set off at 10:00 am local time in the so-called "Fight Hunger: Walk the World" demonstration, aimed at raising funds for the WFP. Every day, 24,000 people die from hunger, 18,000 of them children. The March Against Child Hunger raised the money for wWFP's two programmes aimed at reducing child hunger, one of which focuses on pregnant and lactating women and young children, while the other provides food for school children. "I earnestly hope that, thanks to the contribution of all, the plague of hunger will be surmounted which still afflicts humanity, putting in great danger the hope of life of millions of people," the Pontiff said.
In his appeal for support in the fight against hunger, the Pope said media organisations had a responsibility to publicise hunger in order to mobilise governments and public opinion. Speaking ahead of the Catholic church’s World Day of Social Communications next Sunday, May 28^th, the Pope said the "Church looks with attention to the media, because it is an important vehicle to spread the Gospel and to foster solidarity between peoples, calling attention to the great problems that still mark them profoundly." The theme of the 40^th the World Day of Social Communications this year is "The Media: Network of Communication, Communion and Cooperation." The Holy Father prayed for those who, "through the means of social communication, contribute to consolidate between peoples the bonds of solidarity and peace."