During a general audience at the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall this Wednesday, His Holiness stated that too many minors in the world are “mistreated, violated, or abandoned,” and reflected on “the scourge of child labor, which is more rampant.”

The Holy Father stated that children in the world are “exploited by an economy that does not respect life” and “in this way, the greatest deposit of hope and love is burned,” the Vatican News website reported.

“There are too many children who are forced to work, denied the right to be children, loose their smile,” and “a child who does not dream cannot know or develop his or her talents,” Pope Francis said while calling for “preventing and strongly condemning any abuse they may suffer.”

The Bishop of Rome also asked to reflect on “how many children die from hunger, disasters, diseases, and wars,” who, instead of being loved and protected, “are deprived of their childhood and dreams.”

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