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| Pope Francis decries migrant 'tragedy' at Mexico Mass | Pope Francis decries migrant 'tragedy' at Mexico Mass |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Pope Francis has decried the "tragedy" of people who are forced to migrate, as he celebrated Mass in Mexico's Ciudad Juarez city on the border with the US. | |
| He climbed a ramp overlooking the Rio Grande that separates the city and El Paso, Texas, and laid flowers on a cross erected in memory of migrants who died trying to cross to the other side. | He climbed a ramp overlooking the Rio Grande that separates the city and El Paso, Texas, and laid flowers on a cross erected in memory of migrants who died trying to cross to the other side. |
| Earlier, he met inmates in the jail of Ciudad Juarez that was once one of the most violent cities in Mexico. | Earlier, he met inmates in the jail of Ciudad Juarez that was once one of the most violent cities in Mexico. |
| The events concluded his five-day trip. | |
| "We cannot deny the humanitarian crisis which in recent years has meant the migration of thousands of people," the pontiff told some 300,000 people who attended the open-air Mass. | "We cannot deny the humanitarian crisis which in recent years has meant the migration of thousands of people," the pontiff told some 300,000 people who attended the open-air Mass. |
| On the US side, tens of thousands watched the event on a giant screen. | On the US side, tens of thousands watched the event on a giant screen. |
| "Each step, a journey laden with injustices; the enslaved, the imprisoned and extorted; so many of these brothers and sisters of ours are the consequence of trafficking in human beings," Pope Francis said. | "Each step, a journey laden with injustices; the enslaved, the imprisoned and extorted; so many of these brothers and sisters of ours are the consequence of trafficking in human beings," Pope Francis said. |
| Earlier on Wednesday, the pontiff visited the Cereso jail, a mixed prison which houses about 700 inmates, 250 of them women. | Earlier on Wednesday, the pontiff visited the Cereso jail, a mixed prison which houses about 700 inmates, 250 of them women. |
| His visit was seen as a chance to give hope to the city's residents, who lived through a spate of murders and rampant drug violence which meant few dared leave their homes at night. | His visit was seen as a chance to give hope to the city's residents, who lived through a spate of murders and rampant drug violence which meant few dared leave their homes at night. |
| "The problem of security is not resolved only by incarcerating; rather, it calls us to intervene by confronting the structural and cultural causes of insecurity that impact the entire social framework," Francis told the inmates. | "The problem of security is not resolved only by incarcerating; rather, it calls us to intervene by confronting the structural and cultural causes of insecurity that impact the entire social framework," Francis told the inmates. |
| Pope tells young Mexicans to 'dare to dream' | Pope tells young Mexicans to 'dare to dream' |
| The pontiff's visit came just days after 49 prisoners died in a fight between rival gang members at the Topo Chico jail in the north-eastern city of Monterrey. | The pontiff's visit came just days after 49 prisoners died in a fight between rival gang members at the Topo Chico jail in the north-eastern city of Monterrey. |
| Mexican prisons are notoriously overcrowded and corrupt and the meeting between inmates and the pontiff is expected to draw further attention to these problems. | Mexican prisons are notoriously overcrowded and corrupt and the meeting between inmates and the pontiff is expected to draw further attention to these problems. |
| The BBC's Mexico correspondent Katy Watson says Pope Francis's entire tour in Mexico has been focused on speaking to people who are marginalised. | The BBC's Mexico correspondent Katy Watson says Pope Francis's entire tour in Mexico has been focused on speaking to people who are marginalised. |
| He has repeatedly called on the country's leaders to make it a better place for people to live. | He has repeatedly called on the country's leaders to make it a better place for people to live. |
| On Tuesday, he told young Mexicans in the violence-hit state of Michoacan "to dare to dream". | On Tuesday, he told young Mexicans in the violence-hit state of Michoacan "to dare to dream". |
| He urged them to reject a life of crime and to "feel your value". | He urged them to reject a life of crime and to "feel your value". |