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Mourning:
People pay tribute in Bar- celona, Spain, to victims on the site of a deadly van attack.
Photo: CNS
Catholic boy killed in Barcelona terror act
www.catholicleader.com.au
The Catholic Leader, August 27, 2017
News
PRAYERS are storming heaven for a “delightful little boy” from a Catholic school in the Par- ramatta diocese who died
in a deadly terror attack.
Julian Cadman (pictured),
a seven-year-old student from
St Bernadette’s Primary, Lalor Park, was con rmed dead in a rampage on Las Ramblas, Barce- lona, on August 17.
He was separated from his mother, Jumarie Cadman, when a van rammed into pedestrians on Las Ramblas.
Mrs Cadman was among the pedestrians struck by the van, and was rushed to hospital
for severe injuries.
Catholic Youth Parramatta put out a re-
quest for prayers on their Facebook page days after the attack.
“Your special prayers are need- ed for seven year-old little Julian
Cadman, currently missing following the deadly terrorist attack in Barcelona,” the group
posted on Facebook. Hundreds shared the post and
offered prayers in the hope of nd- ing Julian, but the family con rmed
that Julian died in the attack.
Parramatta diocese schools executive direc-
tor Greg Whitby said Julian was “delightful” and loved by his teachers and fellow students. “Julian was a delightful little boy – curi-
ous and energetic with a kind and generous heart,” Mr Whitby said.
He said the Parramatta diocese would pro- vide the family and their school community assistance, including ongoing counselling, following the tragedy.
“Together with the St Bernadette’s com- munity, we pray for Julian’s family, particu- larly his mother Jumarie who was seriously injured in the attack, his father Andrew, and for all those affected by this terrible event,” Mr Whitby said.
“Julian, you will be in our heart always.”
Parramatta Bishop Vincent Long offered prayers to the Cadman family and his diocese. “May Christ, the Prince of Peace, gently accompany Julian to everlasting life,” he said.
– Emilie Ng
Community
unites for fairer
Queensland
THREE hundred Catholics are expected to attend the rst state-level meeting of faith, community and eth- nic groups working together for a fairer Queensland.
Representatives from Brisbane Archdiocese, including Archbishop Mark Coleridge, will attend the Queensland Community Alliance founding assembly at Brisbane City Hall this week.
The meeting marks the of cial launch of QCA’s state focus to rebuild organised civil society.
More than 1600 people are expected to ood City Hall, and a selection of local, state and federal politi- cians will be among the attendees.
A choir of more than 100 people, made up of choirs from the groups represented on the night, will also make an appearance at the assembly.
QCA operates through partnerships with faith groups, including Catholic representation from the Brisbane Archdiocese, the Presentation Sisters and Edmund Rice Oceania Province, as well as charities, community organisations and ethnic associations
to petition for political action on issues affecting Queenslanders.
This year the QCA has held assemblies in four Catholic parishes in Brisbane asking for changes in maternity care, fairer work conditions for international students, changes to hospital parking affordability and to ask for support in employment opportunities for refugees.
A community assembly held in May at the St Maxi- milian Kolbe parish, Marsden, led to a promise from the state government for a $2 million investment in community-based midwifery care.
QCA lead organiser Dave Copeman said members would share “real stories” on issues regarding mental health, disability services and aged care, as well as employment and training.
Groups attending the founding assembly are scheduled to arrive at Brisbane City Hall from 6pm on Wednesday, August 30. – Emilie Ng
Bishops speak out for rights of West Papuans
CATHOLIC bishops from Australia and Paci c nations have urged support for the indigenous people of West Papua, amid ongoing claims of human rights abuses in the most-easterly prov- inces of Indonesia.
The Federation of Catholic Bishops Confer- ences of Oceania issued a statement supporting the livelihood and cultural integrity of West Papuans, at the conclusion of an executive com- mittee meeting in Auckland on August 14.
“We echo the call for quality education in Papua, for fair and transparent access to jobs, training programs and employment, for respect of land titles, and for clear boundaries between the role of defence and police forces and the role of commerce,” they said.
“The large majority of indigenous people
of Papua seek peace and the various dialogue groups, advocating and witnessing to peaceful co-existence, are a source of hope for all.” However, the Oceania conference, which included Australian representatives Toowoomba Bishop Robert McGuckin and Parramatta Bishop Vincent Long did not endorse a push by West Papuan separatists to break away from Indo- nesia, nor the tactics of Indonesian police and soldiers to suppress unrest.
“We do not promote a view in regard to inde- pendence,” the Bishops’ statement read.
“Indeed we believe that where this question becomes a single focus, care to uphold and strengthen local institutions of democracy may be overlooked.”
A 2016 report by the Catholic Justice and Peace Commission of Brisbane recommended a United Nations investigation into human rights atrocities in West Papua.
A fact- nding team documented military and police intimidation, beatings and torture, kid- napping and murder in West Papua as well as the brutal crushing of peaceful demonstrations.
The team gathered evidence of the rapid demographic shift in West Papua resulting from the in ux of Indonesian migrants into West Papua.
The large
majority of indigenous people of
Papua seek peace and the various dialogue groups, advocating and witnessing to peaceful co-existence, are a source of hope
for all.
Papuans economically, socially and culturally as Muslim economic migrants arrive from Indone- sia’s populous islands of Java, Borneo, Sumatra and Sulawesi.
A day after the Bishops’ statement was issued, dozens of demonstrators were arrested at small protests held in cities across Indonesia to mark the 55th anniversary of the New York Agree- ment, a US-brokered deal under which the Netherlands agreed to transfer control of West Papua to Indonesia, pending a UN-administered plebiscite.
The agreement, which Papuans were not party to, paved the way for 1969’s Act of Free Choice which gave Indonesia control of the former Dutch New Guinea.
Many Papuans say the process was undemo- cratic and a betrayal.
Police closely monitored the protests held in the Indonesian cities of Yogyakarta, Semarang, Ternate, Bandung, Malang and Jakarta, organ- ised by the Papuan Students Alliance and the Indonesian People’s Front for West Papua.
– Mark Bowling
The report detailed growing marginalisation of