Acse Feast at the Comboni Community in Rome

The meeting began with a reflection by Father Venanzio Milani, a Comboni missionary and president of the Acse, on the outcome of one of the five referendums held on 8^th and 9^th June – the one that was closest to his heart – concerning ‘Italian citizenship for foreigners: it proposed to halve from 10 to 5 years the period of legal residence in Italy required of non-EU foreigners of age in order to apply for Italian citizenship. None of the five referendums achieved the required quorum (50% +1). Father Venanzio commented: “It was a tremendous disappointment... But we do not stop in terms of services rendered to migrants and initiatives aimed at providing correct information on the phenomenon.”

Three university students benefiting from scholarships promoted by Acse presented their experience and present situation. This was followed by a reflection on ‘Human Trafficking’ by sister Mariarosa Venturelli, a Comboni missionary. According to the United Nations, an estimated 50 million people are trafficked globally. Those who suffer the most are women, children, migrants and refugees. Sister Mariarosa said: “The ministry of combating human trafficking is closely linked to the phenomenon of migration. Human trafficking is like a perverse mechanism that captures and crushes people, but many grains of sand can make its gears jam.”

The meeting continued with the celebration of the Eucharist, presided over by the Superior General of the Comboni missionaries, Father Luigi Codianni, and cheered by Congolese songs. A lunch closed the day.