- “I have told you that there are 9,500 women victims of gender violence with police protection in Madrid, she has been moved and told us to help and protect them”
- The government delegate presents Her Holiness with a 'Menina', decorated with the colors of the Vatican flag and the keys of St. Peter
“The Pope has asked us to unite and to always put the needs of the people before us. First the people, then the people, later the people, much more behind the people… and in the end, in the end, you.” This is the message of unity, “absolutely consistent with all that is being his papacy” that the pontiff has conveyed to the main authorities of Madrid during the audience he has held at the Apostolic Palace of the Vatican City, as explained by the delegate of the Government in Madrid, Mercedes González.
The meeting, framed in the Holy Year of San Isidro on the occasion of the IV centenary of the canonization of the patron saint of Madrid, was attended by the president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, and the mayor of the capital, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, together with the cardinal archbishop of Madrid, Carlos Osoro. On the part of the Government Delegation, the Papal Audience was also attended by the Deputy Delegate, Elena Bernardo, and the General Secretary, Cristina Navarro.
“I hope that, just as Saint Isidro worked the miracle of joining the three administrations – with the signing of a protocol a year ago – he will also work the miracle that in the run-up to the elections we will have that unity and put the people first and we will not find ourselves in situations as thick as those we are seeing in the media,” added the government delegate at the end of the visit.
Francis, moved by gender violence
The Government delegate has informed the Pontiff that there are 9,500 women victims of gender violence in the Community of Madrid who are currently being protected by the State Security Forces and Corps. The Pope, who has a “profound knowledge” of the political and social situation in Madrid, as revealed by Mercedes González, “has been moved and has said help, protect them and continue working like this”. “This has been very important to me because, as a government delegate, one of my pillars is the fight against this scourge and I have felt in the Pope a feeling of protection for those people who are suffering this scourge.”
Mercedes González has given the pontiff a ‘Menina’, similar to those given each year on the occasion of the 25-N, International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. On this occasion, the statue that the Pope has received, and which reproduces the image of a ‘menina’ by Velázquez, is decorated with the colors of the Vatican flag, yellow and white, and the keys of St. Peter, symbol of the Catholic Church and papal authority. On the plaque of the figure presented by the Delegation of the Government in Madrid to His Holiness you can read: “1⁰ Jubilee Year San Isidro Labrador”.
Protocol between the three administrations and the Archbishopric of Madrid
On April 4, 2022, during the joint presentation of the Holy Year of San Isidro by the Archbishop of Madrid, the delegate of the Government, the President of the Community and the mayor of the capital, a protocol of collaboration was signed between the Archbishopric of Madrid and the three administrations for the promotion and organization of various activities on the occasion of the declaration of "Holy Jubilee Year San Isidro Labrador", granted by the Holy See for the 400th anniversary of the canonization of the patron saint of Madrid. The event took place in the Capitular Hall of the Cathedral of Santa María la Real de la Almudena.
Exceptional Public Interest Event
Two weeks after the signing of the protocol, Mercedes González held a meeting in the Moncloa Complex with the Minister of the Presidency, Relations with the Courts and Democratic Memory, Félix Bolaños, to ask the Government to promote the declaration of the Jubilee Year of San Isidro as “An Event of Exceptional Public Interest”.
On May 13, 2022, two days before the Jubilee Year began, the Government delegate thanked the Executive of Pedro Sánchez for the “absolute promptness” to respond to the request. Previously, the Government Delegation had committed itself to the Community and the City Council to promote this declaration, also included in the signing of the collaboration protocol. The declaration as “Exceptional Public Interest Event” makes it possible for companies that sponsor, donate or finance jubilee events or their promotion and advertising to benefit from significant tax exemptions.