VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo warned on Friday that freedom of expression is “rapidly shrinking” in Western countries, and urged the right to conscientious objection for people who refuse military service or for doctors who refuse to perform abortions or euthanasia.
“It is painful to see how, especially in the West, the space for genuine freedom of expression is rapidly shrinking,” the pope said in an address to diplomats accredited to the Vatican.
“A new Orwellian-style language is developing which, in an attempt to be increasingly inclusive, ends up excluding those who do not conform to the ideologies that are fueling it,” said Leo, the first US pope.
