Archbishop speaks of South Africa's ills in address to religious

Published: 2007-04-23

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (CNS) -- The head of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference called the ruling African National Congress' slogan, "People First," an empty charade. Archbishop Buti Tlhagale of Johannesburg said a rich elite class had sprung up "almost overnight" because of government patronage, while many people in rural areas "are trapped in chilling poverty." In a mid-April address to South Africa's Leadership Conference of Consecrated Life, the archbishop said widespread corruption in the civil service includes forgery, bribery and "jobs for pals," noting that "cases of corrupt policemen appear increasingly difficult to overcome." A "dangerous mix of poverty and greed" has unleashed a wave of crime, he said, noting that South Africans "live in fear for their lives, their property." Criminals are often freed on technicalities by the courts and they "return to society and continue to terrorize and brutalize innocent people," he said.

Copyright (c) 2007 Catholic News Service /U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The CNS news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed, including but not limited to such means as framing or any other digital copying or distribution method, in whole or in part without the prior written authority of Catholic News Service .