BRUSSELS: Buildings and equipment of Radio and Télé Soleil, a catholic radio and TV station – member of SIGNIS in Haiti, were destroyed by the earthquake- which devastated the city of Port-au-Prince in the beginning of January. Managers of the station, escaped unhurt, however, according to SIGNIS representative in Haiti, Fr Jean Desinord.

But, a few days after the tragedy that claimed more than 150,000 human lives, news filtered in of the death of Dr Zilda Arns Neumann, the Brazilian founder of the Children’s Pastoral Action (CPA). She was on a mission on the Caribbean island.

Relentlessly involved in favour of the rights of the child, Arns opened the recent SIGNIS World Congress 2009 in Chiang Mai, Thialand, with a keynote address on ‘Human Rights and Children Rights’.

Arns Neuman, a pediatric and public health physician, was the international coordinator of Pastoral da Criança (CPA), an ecumenical organization of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB). It helps 1.8million children and pregnant women in poor Brazilian communities.

She also founded and coordinated the Pastoral of Elderly People. From 1994 to 1996, she was a member of the Brazilian National Council of Children’s and Adolescent’s Rights (Conanda). As the result of her commitment to children’s rights, she was awarded a number of prizes, like the Special Honour by UNICEF (1988); the Human Rights Prize from the government of Brazil and from the University of São Paulo (1997); the Human Rights Medal from the Jewish entity B’nai B’rith (1999); the Human Rights Prize offered by the United Nations, Brazil (2001); the Human Rights Prize of the King of Spain (2005).

“I believe that social transformation requires putting most of our efforts into the integral development of children. Children, when well cared for, are seeds of Peace and Hope,” Zilda Arns told the SIGNIS World Congress. She called the media to follow the example of Jesus in giving words of hope not only to save children’s lives, but to build a more just and fraternal world.

The archbishop of Port-au- Prince, Mgr Joseph Serge Miot, also lost his life during the earthquake. SIGNIS received some good news from Radio and Télé Soleil that Fr
Desinord and the station manager Fr Hubert Mesidor, a Salesian priest, both survived.

More News

>> Church Takes Stock After Earthquake
>> Revision of Roman Missal Hits Resistance
>> Kisangani Church Organizes Conference On LRA
>> Church News In Brief