Pope Francis on Wednesday suggested that countries provide vaccines opposed to coronaviruses for all when available.
“I would be unhappy if, for the COVID-19 vaccine, the priority of the richest deserved! I would be unhappy if this vaccine had become the asset of this country or another, that universal and for everyone,” Francis said in his weekly general audience.
Francis’ comments came a day after the World Health Organization warned that some countries may simply store vaccines in what Ceo Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called “vaccine nationalism.”
Francis in his speech, which is part of a monthly series on the broader effects of coronavirus, said that while it is essential to locate a vaccine, cure the virus of “social injustice, unequal opportunities, marginalization and lack of coverage for the weakest” was ultimately what world leaders will report to the crisis.
“The pandemic is a crisis, and we’re coming out of a crisis like before: either we get bigger or we get worse,” he said. “We want to get out of this bigger to counter social injustice and environmental damage. Today we have the opportunity to build something different.
Francis was frank about how the virus exposed social inequalities, especially after Italy became one of the most affected countries in March. On a dramatic televised occasion in which he blessed the global, Francis said that closures in many countries will be a time to reflect on the rupture of the global before the pandemic.
“We have not been awakened by wars or injustices around the world, nor have we heard the cry of the deficient or of our grave planet,” Francis said. “We moved on despite everything, thinking that we would stay healthy in a world of poor health.”