Madrid’s Manuela Carmena addresses Pope’s conference of world mayors

THE Pope has gathered mayors from cities across the world, including Madrid’s Manuela Carmena, to discuss how to tackle two issues he feels should be political priorities – climate change and modern slavery.
The meeting drew the chief political figures from 60 cities, also including New York, Paris and Mexico City. London’s Boris Johnson was invited, but declined to attend as he was too busy.
The gathering was also addressed by two Mexican survivors of slavery – a young woman who was forced into prostitution, and another who was chained up in a tailor’s shop.
The Ahora Madrid leader Carmena called for an analysis of why using prostitutes was becoming more acceptable amongst a younger generation of men. “If we want to prevent the terrible crime of sexual slavery, we have to reflect on its causes with the appropriate sincerity,” she told the leaders of the meeting.
Pope Francis said that he hoped the conference could encourage leaders to find a “bold agreement that will confine global warming to a limit that’s safe for humanity while protecting the poor and the vulnerable.”