Pope Francis on Thursday urged political leaders in Singapore, a leading global financial hub, to seek fair wages for the country’s million-plus lower-paid foreign workers.
In likely the last major speech of an ambitious 12-day tour across Southeast Asia and Oceania, the 87-year-old pontiff singled out concern for Singapore’s rapidly aging population and its migrant workforce, primarily centered in the construction and domestic services industries.
“I hope that special attention will be paid to the poor and the elderly … as well as to protecting the dignity of migrant workers,” the pope said in an address to about 1,000 politicians and civil and religious leaders at the National University of Singapore.
Photo: AFP
“These workers contribute a great deal to society and should be guaranteed a fair wage,” he said.
There were 1.1 million foreigners on work permits in Singapore who earned less than S$3,000 (US$2,300) per month as of December last year, including 286,300 domestic workers and 441,100 workers in the construction, shipyard and process sectors, government data showed.
Many of the migrant workers come from nearby countries such as the Philippines, Malaysia, China, Bangladesh and India.
Francis’ speech came after private meetings with Singaporean President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) at the country’s parliament building, where the pope was greeted with a formal honor guard and the playing of the Vatican anthem.
He was also presented with a white orchid plant, a new hybrid that was named in his honor.
Concern for migrants has been a common theme for Francis. Earlier on his 12-day tour, he asked leaders in Papua New Guinea to work for fair wages as that country becomes a major target of international companies for its gas, gold and other reserves.
Francis, who has prioritized trips to places never visited by a pope, or where Catholics are a small minority, is only the second pope to visit Singapore, following a brief five-hour layover by the late John Paul II in 1986.
Singapore, with a population of 5.92 million, is plurality Buddhist, with about 31 percent of people identifying with that faith.
The Vatican has about 210,000 Catholics in the country. There are also strong Muslim, Hindu and Taoist communities.
Francis praised the country as “a mosaic of ethnicities, cultures and religions living together in harmony,” and said the political officials were “preventing extremism and intolerance from gaining strength or endangering social harmony”.
Later yesterday, Francis celebrated a Mass at Singapore’s national sports stadium, which drew about 50,000 people, including Catholics who traveled from Hong Kong for the event.
The Vatican is currently renegotiating a controversial deal with China over the appointment of Catholic bishops in the country, which is up for renewal next month.
Francis’ 12-day tour has also included stops in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and East Timor.
He returns to Rome today.
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