Pope Francis on a visit to Kangemi slum in Nairobi, Kenya today (November 27, 2015) said those living in such communities are victims of "new forms of colonialism" by rich countries and said the urban poor have a "sacred right" to have their basic needs met, according to the Wall Street Journal website.
The pontiff heard about the conditions Nairobi's slum dwellers have to endure: living in shacks made of tin sheeting, using pit toilets, and purchasing water from communal taps.
"These are the wounds inflicted by minorities who cling to power and wealth, who selfishly squander while a growing majority is forced to flee to abandoned, filthy and rundown peripheries," the pope said, on the third day of a trip to Africa.
Land, jobs, and housing are "sacred" rights, he said, and criticized "new forms of colonialism that would make African countries parts of a machine, cogs on a gigantic wheel." More than half of Nairobi's residents live in slums, according to the United Nations.
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