DEATH SENTENCE
Two wrongs don't make a right PERTH, WA: September 7, 1989
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No more wars PRAY FOR ITS END: POPE
WARSAW: Pope John Paul ll has asked world religious leaders to pray that "war be banished from every part of the world" and that it "disappears as an instrument for resolving conflicts." The pope made the appeal in a taped message televised via a giant screeen in Royal Castle Square in Warsaw, Poland, September 1, to a gathering of international relgious leaders commemorating the 50th anniversary of the German invasion of Poland, which sparked World War II. "The invasion of Poland began a long and painful period of suffering for the population — for the Christians, for the Jews and for everyone," the pope said. The war also caused "vast and tearing wounds in the entire world" which are still causing suffering, he added. Religious leaders must work so that "this tragic event never ceases to be a warning," the pope said.
"Today, in Warsaw, tile memory of the war does not give rise to a shout of vengeance nor an incentive for hate, but to an invocation of peace," he said. "It is necessary to continue this search for peace in dialogue and prayer," he said. The pope noted that the end of World War II did not bring lasting peace to the world. He cited "the conflicts which in these 50 years have been unleashed and those which are still in progress," without mentioning any specific fighting. Religious leaders must convince people "to follow the road of dialogue and negotiations which respect the rights of everyone," the pope said.
One of the best ways to become homeless is to become a State ward," said Fr Dethlefs, "State Governments need to do much better. They take a kid away from a parent and then the kid Is homeless."
Fr Dethlefs, currently a prison chaplain in south east Queensland, is better-qualified than most to come up with ideas on how concerned individuals and groups
can tackle to snowballing problem of homeless children. With Jan Carter of the Brotherhood of St Laurence, he was a commissioner on the national inquiry into homeless children established by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission and chaired by Brian Burdekin. The commissioners alarmed Australia when they published their 300page report earlier this year, full of damning facts about our neglect of youth in crisis. They found there were 20,000 to 25,000 homeless children under 18,
about 19,000 of them aged 12 to 15. Kids nightly risk violence, sexual assault and illness by sleeping in doorways, drains, clothing bins, car parks and under bridges. Many are forced into prostitution and crime because they cannot afford their living costs and there are severe shortages of accommodation and specialist support services.
The inquiry is being reconvened in Canberra on September 11. The commissioners want to find out what State and Federal governments have decided to do about their report.
Fr Dethlefs said people should ask questions about what their State does Government because the States have constitutional most responsibility to provide major services for homeless youth. They should ask what pre-release programs are available for children in institutions and what case-loads community youth workers have. "There are very few prerelease programs for young people and very little follow-up and this is where kids become homeless. Many child community workers have impossible caseloads," he said.
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Focus on Bunbury • Page 7
The anniversary ceremonies were boycotted by numerous Jewish leaders because of a dispute over a Carmelite convent at the former Nazi death camp of Auschwitz. (See stories P.5)
Demand State answers on homeless
BRISBANE: People who want to do something about youth homelessness should demand that their State Government give its wards a better deal, according to Fr Wally Dethlefs.
Record talk
Both Fr Dethlefs and the Burdekin report emphasised that there are answers.
name to young people. They can lock them up without any criminal offence being committed," he said.
"We need to have the political will to resource "It's escalated because those answers. Home- of housing problems and and lessness is largely pre- unemployment ventable," Fr Dethlefs because of the breakdown of local communisaid. ties and the extended Fr Dethlefs has been family. working with youths in crisis longer than some of "Another factor is the those he helps have been churches used to have alive. large institutions for He first worked in the teenagers. For very good area in 1973 when he reasons they examined became a chaplain to the what they were doing in Wilson Youth Hospital, a them and decided it wasn't appropriate any youth detention centre. more. As they pulled out, "Iwas horrified by what they left an enormous the state does in our vacuum," he said.
It's all action at the Little Sisters of the Poor • Page 10 & 11
Land grant will help Christian link A state government land grant in Duncraig will mean Catholics and Anglicans can plan cooperatively to look after more than 200 aged people. Both Catholic Homes for the Aged and Anglican Homes, have received 1.8ha each at the corner of Warwick Road and Marmion Avenue. The grant of crown land is estimated to be worth $2.3 million. It is the first such crown grant to the Catholic organisation.
Anglican Homes intend to start immediately on a 40 bed nursing home. They will later expand into self-contained units. Catholic Homes will start next year on a 40-bed hostel and some 40 or 50 self-contained single and two bedroom units. Both organisations will share access to the hostel and nursing home and there will be cooperation in the provision of laundry, transport, catering, etc.
A shared chapel is also envisaged. In conjunction with the development Duncraig Catholic Homes intends to build a 10-15 bed unit in the Girrawheen-Marangaroo area to serve older Asian people and to involve care by the Servite Sisters. Both Catholic Homes and Anglican Homes will receive $1.25 million Commonwealth grants for their constructions and the remainder of their $2
million costs will have to be carried by each body. The Catholic Homes hostel is to set aside special beds for deaf aged and for Alzheimer's sufferers. The Duncraig development will adjoin the existing Wanneroo Council development facilities that include a senior citizens centre, a library, recreation centre, basketball and tennis courts and parkland. Catholic Homes currently has
approval tor two 40-bed hostels and other sites are being investigated for using the balance of beds held over after the Duncraig development and that is expected to be ready at the end of 1990. Catholic Homes, which has been responsible for the building of seven aged facilities currently manages four: Two at Servile Villa where 24 selfcontained units were finished earlier this year, at Archbishop Goody Hostel at East Perth, and at Marist Lodge at Belmont.