The Lamp of Peace of St. Francis will be given to Angela Merkel. The custodian of the Sacred Convent of Assisi, Father Mauro Gambetti, during the greeting that preceded the registration of the Christmas concert in the upper basilica of St. Francis, announced that the 2017 German Chancellor is the winner.

The reason for the decision – he explained Gambetti – is linked to the fact that “in Europe the Germany she led stood out in the work of conciliation in favor of the peaceful coexistence of peoples. The German chancellor has built bridges, instead of raising walls”. Merkel accepted with pleasure and in spring she will go to Assisi to collect the gift.

The management of migrants has weighed heavily on the decision. “Staying with the anti-refugee wave that hit almost all European leaders, especially those of the Visegrad group countries (Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic) – wrote the Holy Convent in a note – Merkel invited the Syrian refugees to reach Germany and apply for asylum: in 2015, the Germans welcomed about one million migrants and Germany is among the six EU states that have taken on almost 80 percent of the requests for asylum presented in Europe “.

“The announcement to deliver the Lamp for peace to Merkel is a very important piece of news and is a source of pride for the whole Umbrian community,” said the president of the region, Catiuscia Marini. “The conferment on the chancellor – he added – will be an opportunity for dialogue and comparison”.

Last year the Lamp of St. Francis was assigned to the President of Colombia and Nobel Peace Prize winner Juan Manuel Santos for the truce reached with the Farc guerrillas.