HAVANA, DEC 13 (ZENIT).- Cardinal Jaime Ortega, Archbishop of Havana, hoped the fiftieth anniversary of the U.N. Declaration of Human Rights would make the majority of men on earth reflect on its meaning.
In a pastoral message, published in the last issue of "Aquí la Iglesia," (Here, the Church) a publication of the archdiocese of Havana, the Cardinal said "humanity has a long way to go before it totally enjoys its rights."
He stressed that the "gigantic effort" to guarantee the rights "is still incipient, as few countries of the world totally respect the rights of man." In order to understand "the importance human rights have for the Church or, better yet, the rights of the person, because it is more adequate to refer to them this way, it is necessary to look at man and woman in their very being, as God's masterpiece of creation."
According to the Cardinal, a man who does not have his social rights assured is not treated with dignity as a person, nor is the man who does not have his personal rights guaranteed, including physical and moral integrity, personal, civil and political liberties. "The social rights to food, health, and education have as their end the personal good of man, who is a social being. Personal liberties, including religious faith, ideologies, residence, movement, expression, meeting and association, teaching, the personal duties of man -- these are all at the heart of a society."
The Archbishop of Havana recalled that in his message for peace for the current year, John Paul II reiterated, yet again, that human rights must be considered in their totality.
Finally, the Cardinal invited "all men of State, political parties, jurists, scientists and the greatest number of inhabitants of our planet to reflect on the meaning of the anniversary being celebrated and, referring concretely to Cuba, he asked: "What are we doing for the totality of the rights of the person to be fulfilled?"
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