Pope holds private and fruitful talks with Ramos
Pope holds private and fruitful talks with Ramos
MANILA (Reuter): Pope John Paul II and Philippine President Fidel Ramos yesterday sought through personal contact to heal a rift between state and church in Asia's only Catholic country.
The two met for a one-on-one chat at the presidential palace on the second day of the Pope's visit to the Philippines before the 74-year-old John Paul held religious services for youth leaders attending World Youth Day celebrations.
"I briefed the Holy Father on the social reform agenda of the government and my commitment to implement social reforms hand-in- hand with the continuing economic progress of the country...," Ramos said in a statement.
He described the talks as fruitful, but did not say whether they had discussed in detail the government's support of birth control, the issue that has brought Ramos into conflict with the church.
Ramos, the country's first Protestant leader, has been bitterly attacked in recent months by Jaime Cardinal Sin, the archbishop of Manila and the country's most vocal cleric, over his support for birth control and what the prelate sees as the president's dictatorial tendencies.
Notably absent from the palace was Health Secretary Juan Flavier, who, as the architect of the government's birth-control program, has attracted the greatest ire of the church.
Most other senior government figures were at the palace but Flavier told the Philippine News Agency he had been too busy to attend as he had been inspecting medical support services for the papal visit.
The Pope's schedule was unaffected by a hunt by security forces for a group of Moslem militants suspected of preparing an attack on him.
Senior security sources said agents were trying to track down Abdul Mahmood Abdul Karim, an electronics expert, and his Filipino girlfriend.
They claimed Karim, a 26-year-old man of Palestinian extraction but carrying a Pakistani passport, was the leader of a 23-person gang that has slipped into the country.
The Philippine government has confirmed that two men have been arrested on suspicion of posing a threat to the Pope but declined to comment further on security grounds.
"All in all it has been very satisfactory," said Defense Secretary Renato de Villa when asked about security.
He said security preparations were satisfactory although more police may have to be drafted into the capital to control the huge crowds.
Ignoring the threats, the Pope traveled through the streets in an armored "popemobile" to an ecstatic welcome from people living in the heart of the city.
They waved yellow and white flags and erupted into cheers and shouts each time he waved from the glass-sided vehicle.
Before leaving the Apostolic Nunciature where he is staying, the Pope came onto the balcony of the green and white building to bless the crowd, a storekeeper said.
"Seeing him so close was a gift from God," said Lina Estella, 67, who traveled from Zambales, north of Manila, to see the Pope for the second time. She also saw him during his first papal visit to Manila in 1981.
The main part of the Pope's day was devoted to the 10th World Youth Day celebrations.
He celebrated mass at the University of Santo Tomas for the leaders of the tens of thousands of young foreigners and Filipinos gathered in Manila for the Youth Day.
He told them "enormous tasks lie before the youth of the world, especially before the Catholic youth of the Philippines, of Asia and the Far East, on the eve of the third millennium."
The Pope is due to celebrate the climax of the Youth Day celebrations tomorrow before leaving the next day for Papua New Guinea. He then goes on to Australia and Sri Lanka.