Pope Francis hosts East Timor mass for more than half a million faithful

Pope Francis hosts East Timor mass for more than half a million faithful
Pope Francis presides over a votive mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary Queen in Tasitolu, west of Dili, East Timor on Sept. 10, 2024. (AP)
Short Url
Updated 10 September 2024
Follow

Pope Francis hosts East Timor mass for more than half a million faithful

Pope Francis hosts East Timor mass for more than half a million faithful
  • Pilgrims have clamored to the capital to catch a glimpse of the 87-year-old pontiff
  • Many arrived for the mass hours early to get a prime spot, waiting in the heat

DILI, East Timor: Pope Francis hosted a mass for hundreds of thousands of devotees in East Timor on Tuesday, rallying the faithful of the most Catholic country outside the Vatican in tropical heat.
Pilgrims have clamored to the capital to catch a glimpse of the 87-year-old pontiff, greeting him with a rapturous reception in a coastal area of Dili ahead of his sermon.
Around 600,000 people were in attendance at the mass as it got underway, the Vatican said in a statement, citing local authorities.
“I am so happy for everyone in East Timor. Now I want to see Papa Francisco here and give my present to Papa Francisco. I am so emotional,” said Mary Michaela, 17, who said she would attend the service.
It was the main event of the third leg of Francis’s 12-day Asia-Pacific tour, which has already taken in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, and will conclude in Singapore.
Many arrived for the mass hours early to get a prime spot, waiting in the heat.
Firefighters sprayed devotees with water, and many held white-and-yellow Vatican umbrellas to protect themselves from the glaring sun.
Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao joined crowds to lift spirits with a sing-along, before pouring water into the mouths of those waiting to perform for Pope Francis.
Earlier on Tuesday he met the Catholic faithful at a cathedral in Dili, calling for the “perfume of the Gospel” to be spread against alcoholism, violence and a lack of respect for women.
On his first day in East Timor, Francis addressed the country’s leaders, hailing a new era of “peace” since independence in 2002, and also called on them to prevent abuse against young people in a nod to recent Catholic Church child abuse scandals.
But it was the mass that rallied the faithful of Asia’s youngest country.
“I am grateful I can join this Holy Mass regardless of my age. I don’t know if I would still be able to come if the pope visited even a few years later,” said 49-year-old housewife Felicidade do Rosario.
Around 300,000 people had officially registered for the mass, the government said.
Hundreds of thousands were estimated to have shown up, bringing an estimated total to nearly half the country’s entire population, according to the Vatican.
“It is a blessing of God to us, the people in this land,” said Atanasio Sarmento de Sousa, a 46-year-old member of the committee organizing the pope’s visit.
The sheer number of people descending on Dili caused at least one local telecom company to inform customers their signal would be affected by the pope’s visit.
In 2023, around a million people congregated in the Democratic Republic of Congo capital Kinshasa for Pope Francis’s visit.
The record is still held by Philippine capital Manila in 2015 where more than six million people are believed to have gathered to see Francis.
This visit is only the second papal trip to East Timor, where around 98 percent of the population is Catholic, after John Paul II in 1989.
East Timor’s capital had a $12 million makeover before the visit, including $1 million spent on an altar where the pope will sit on stage next to a crucifix.
The cost has attracted criticism because East Timor is one of the poorest countries in the world.
Rights groups also say some makeshift homes were demolished in preparation for the mass. The government says they were erected illegally.
Authorities have also relocated street vendors in areas where Francis will travel, prompting further criticism on social media.
However, others who had traveled to see the pope were more optimistic about the occasion.
“There are still many problems that need to be taken care of, but the pope has come here to bring joyful news,” said Felix Kosat, an Indonesian Catholic priest.
“So let’s make changes.”


Blinken says Asia concerned about spread of Middle East conflict

Blinken says Asia concerned about spread of Middle East conflict
Updated 4 sec ago
Follow

Blinken says Asia concerned about spread of Middle East conflict

Blinken says Asia concerned about spread of Middle East conflict
  • “We are seeing escalation after escalation, a regionalization of the conflict that is becoming a threat to global peace and security”

VIENTIANE LAOS: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday there was deep concern in Asia about the prospect of conflict spreading in the Middle East, as the UN chief called for everything possible to be done to avoid “all-out war” in Lebanon.
The conflict in the Middle East was a central issue during Friday’s East Asia Summit in Laos, where Blinken said Washington was dedicated to using diplomacy to try to control the situation in the face of what he called an Iranian-led axis of resistance.
“The intense focus of the United States, which has been the case going back a year... (is) preventing these conflicts from spreading. And we’re working on that every day,” Blinken told a press conference.
“We’re working very hard through deterrence and through diplomacy to prevent that from happening. There’s also obviously deep concern that we share about the plight of children, women, and men in Gaza.”
The US has stressed to Israel the importance of meeting the humanitarian needs of people in Gaza, Blinken said, adding it was in Israel’s interest that people forced from their homes by hostilities in Lebanon are able to return.
The annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations also included meetings with leaders and top diplomats from India, China, Japan, the US, Russia, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, as well as United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
Friday’s discussions included the war in Ukraine, Myanmar’s civil war, climate change, tensions in the Taiwan Strait and concern about confrontations in the South China Sea, a key conduit for at least $3 trillion in annual ship-borne trade.

‘Escalation after escalation’
Guterres condemned an attack by Israeli forces on a watchtower that wounded two UN peacemakers from Indonesia, an incident he said violated international law and must not be repeated.
He said any spread of fighting in the Middle East would have dramatically negative impacts on the whole world and called for maximum restraint from all sides.
“I have never seen in my time as secretary-general any example of death and destruction as dramatic as what we are witnessing here,” he told a press conference.
“We are seeing escalation after escalation, a regionalization of the conflict that is becoming a threat to global peace and security.”
“We see an enormous tragedy in Lebanon. And we must do everything to avoid an all-out war,” he added.
Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. made a plea before the regional leaders for all parties to be genuinely committed to managing disputes over the South China Sea, where his country has been embroiled in more than a year of confrontations with China.
The row has sparked fears those could spiral out of control, as US defense ally the Philippines accuses China of aggression, and Beijing expresses outrage over what it calls provocations and territorial infringements by Manila.
His remarks come a day after he called for ASEAN and China to urgently speed up negotiations on a code of conduct.
“These kinds of behavior cannot be ignored, and demand of us concerted and serious efforts to truly manage our disputes,” Marcos said.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, whose country takes over the ASEAN chair next year, said violence must be avoided and that Chinese Premier Li Qiang had given assurances that matters would be handled peacefully.
“This is an issue that affects all countries but the solution we propose, that is agreed upon by all, including China, is to avoid violence, use diplomatic channels, have negotiations,” he told a press conference.

Intensely focused
ASEAN and China on Friday issued a statement recognizing the proliferation of online gambling crimes and telecommunications network fraud, more commonly known as scam centers, for which hundreds of thousands of people have been trafficked in Southeast Asia by criminal gangs, according to the UN.
Blinken and the ASEAN leaders on Friday agreed to cooperate on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and strengthen its safety, security and trustworthiness, including developing compatible approaches to AI governance.
Blinken gave reassurances about Washington’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific region, regardless of the outcome of next month’s US presidential election.
“Even with everything else going on, our focus has remained intensely on this region,” he said.

 


Emir of Qatar to visit UK in December, Buckingham Palace announces

Emir of Qatar to visit UK in December, Buckingham Palace announces
Updated 11 October 2024
Follow

Emir of Qatar to visit UK in December, Buckingham Palace announces

Emir of Qatar to visit UK in December, Buckingham Palace announces
  • State visit highlights growing partnership between nations in sectors such as education, business, energy

LONDON: King Charles will host the Emir of Qatar and his wife during a state visit to the UK on Dec. 3-4, Buckingham Palace announced on Friday.

Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani and his wife, Sheikha Jawaher, will stay at the palace in central London during their visit, The Times newspaper reported.

Sheikh Tamim, who became Qatar’s emir in 2013, is known for his strong ties to the UK, having attended Sherborne School and Sandhurst.

The state visit highlights a growing partnership between the two nations, particularly in sectors such as education, business, and energy.

Sheikh Tamim and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer met during the Paris Olympic Games this summer, and also met previously in Qatar.

King Charles visited Qatar several times when he was Prince of Wales, and Sheikh Tamim attended his coronation last year.

Their most recent meeting took place during the COP28 summit in Dubai in November and December last year.


Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit

Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit
Updated 11 October 2024
Follow

Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit

Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit
  • Delegates were urged to put aside differences and move negotiations forward during the two-day “pre-COP” in Azerbaijan
  • At COP29, countries are supposed to agree on a new goal for “climate finance” that meets the needs of the world’s poorest countries in dealing with global warming

PARIS: A key meeting ahead of the UN COP29 climate summit ended Friday in frustration with countries making little progress over how to fund a new finance deal for poorer nations.
Delegates were urged to put aside differences and move negotiations forward during the two-day “pre-COP” in Azerbaijan, which is hosting the major climate talks in November.
Not all countries were represented so smaller gains, rather than concrete breakthroughs, were hoped for during the Baku meet.
But the gathering wrapped with nations no closer to resolving the same sticking points that have hindered the talks for months, attendees told AFP.
“Despite some hopeful talk of coming together, countries remain quite far apart,” said Iskander Erzini Vernoit, co-founder and director at the IMAL Initiative for Climate and Development, who was present in Baku.
At COP29, countries are supposed to agree on a new goal for “climate finance” that meets the needs of the world’s poorest countries in dealing with global warming.
The existing amount of $100 billion a year is considered insufficient and rich countries are under pressure to raise their contributions by at least a factor of 10.
Donors have still not said how much they are willing to pay, frustrating those advocating for a larger financial commitment from the countries most responsible for climate change to date.
“It is outrageous that just weeks before COP29, developed countries did not say how much money they are willing provide for this new finance goal,” said Mariana Paoli from Christian Aid.
Some developed countries want the pact to offer mixed layers of finance: one from governments, another from multilateral lenders, and private capital.
But Paoli said without developed countries agreeing to pay from their coffers without strings attached “any number at COP will be a meaningless figure.”
Most climate finance comes as loans, and developing countries say it worsens their debt problems.
They are pushing for unconditional grants to finance clean energy and climate adaptation measures, and want funding for disaster relief known as “loss and damage” included in any new deal.
Rebecca Thiessen from the NGO coalition CAN said it was “positive” to hear rich nations at Baku talk of a pact in trillions instead of billions.
“The scale of need has been recognized, but no figure has been put on the table,” she said.


ECHR ruling for Cyprus asylum-seekers a ‘perfect win’ for human rights, say lawyers

ECHR ruling for Cyprus asylum-seekers a ‘perfect win’ for human rights, say lawyers
Updated 11 October 2024
Follow

ECHR ruling for Cyprus asylum-seekers a ‘perfect win’ for human rights, say lawyers

ECHR ruling for Cyprus asylum-seekers a ‘perfect win’ for human rights, say lawyers
  • The ECHR on Tuesday condemned Nicosia for returning two Syrian refugees to Lebanon who had arrived on a small boat

LONDON: Human rights lawyers on Friday were celebrating a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights for Cyprus to pay damages to two Syrian refugees who were blocked from applying for asylum as a major victory.

The ECHR on Tuesday condemned Nicosia for returning two Syrian refugees to Lebanon who had arrived on a small boat, without examining their asylum claim, and said the country had committed four violations of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Cyprus failed to conduct “any assessment of the risk of lack of access to an effective asylum process in Lebanon or the living conditions of asylum-seekers there,” it also said, adding that the Cypriot government had not assessed the risk of “refoulement,” which is the forcible return of refugees to a country such as Syria where they might be subjected to persecution.

Lawyer Nicoletta Charalambidou, who represented the refugees, said the judgment set a precedent against Cyprus’ migration policies, The Guardian newspaper reported on Friday.

“For four years the migration policies of Cyprus have relied on human rights violations, and illegal pushbacks at land and sea,” she said.

“This ruling has exposed these illegal practices and it has set a precedent. It is a perfect win for human rights,” she added.

Charalambidou stated that more legal actions are likely to follow, as asylum-seekers seek justice for violations of their rights under EU and international law.

“There are many more that I will be filing here in Nicosia before the administrative court of international protection and of course this week’s judgment (in Strasbourg) will encourage others,” she said.

“At first we saw pushbacks in the sea, now we’re seeing pushbacks in the buffer zone but Cyprus has obligations. It has to provide access to asylum requests wherever they come from and it has to provide dignified reception conditions. It is duty bound to do that under EU and international law.”

The ruling came amid reports by the UN’s refugee agency and the Border Violence Monitoring Network highlighting Cyprus’ use of new surveillance technologies and forcible expulsions, particularly in the buffer zone.

Around 65 asylum-seekers, including minors and cancer patients, remain stranded in the UN-patrolled zone between Cyprus’ divided regions.

“The state is now providing food but what is required is a sustainable long-term solution,” said Emilia Strovolidou, the UN agency’s spokesperson. “We’re in talks with the government. There are people who’ve been in limbo for months now and psychologically they’re in a very difficult situation.”

However, Nicholas Ioannides, Cyprus’ deputy minister in charge of migration, said in August his country was not bound under EU law to examine asylum requests even if lodged by claimants in a transit zone.

“Cyprus has taken a decision that it will not accept flows through the green line, particularly as we’ve managed to have zero arrivals via sea,” he said.


Russia launches 4th aerial attack in a week against Ukraine’s grain-exporting Odesa region

Russia launches 4th aerial attack in a week against Ukraine’s grain-exporting Odesa region
Updated 11 October 2024
Follow

Russia launches 4th aerial attack in a week against Ukraine’s grain-exporting Odesa region

Russia launches 4th aerial attack in a week against Ukraine’s grain-exporting Odesa region
  • Four Russian missile and drone attacks on the Odesa region this week have killed 14 people and wounded around 20
  • The strikes have hit merchant ships and damaged port infrastructure in the region

KYIV: A nighttime Russian missile strike on Odesa killed at least four people including a 16-year-old girl, regional authorities said Friday, in the latest in a series of attacks this week on the southern Ukrainian region that are likely intended to disrupt the country’s grain exports.
Four Russian missile and drone attacks on the Odesa region this week have killed 14 people and wounded around 20, according to local officials. The strikes have hit merchant ships and damaged port infrastructure in the region, which is a vital hub for Ukraine’s agricultural exports through the Black Sea.
An attack on Odesa late Wednesday killed nine people and hit a container ship sailing under the Panamanian flag — the third attack on a merchant vessel in four days, according to regional Gov. Oleh Kiper.
The apparent Russian effort to frustrate Ukraine’s exports, which bring vital revenue for a national economy battered by more than two years of war, coincided with a renewed push by Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky to ensure continuing military and financial support from his country’s Western partners.
Ukraine’s stretched and short-handed army is currently under heavy pressure in the country’s eastern Donetsk region. Russian forces recently pushed it out of the Donetsk town of Vuhledar and are now in control of about half of nearby Toretsk, local administration chief Vasyl Chynchyk said Friday. To stop the losses, Zelensky needs to secure more help.
Russia last year tore up an agreement that allowed Ukraine — one of the world’s biggest suppliers of grain and other food staples, especially to developing nations — to export produce safely through the Black Sea.
Months later, and amid successful Ukrainian attacks on Russia’s Black Sea fleet which forced its navy to back away from the coast, Ukraine established a shipping corridor that hugs the coast down to Turkiye and opens a way to the Mediterranean Sea.
A special insurance program has provided affordable coverage to shippers who have carried millions of tons of cargo out of Ukraine, but the latest attacks could jeopardize that arrangement.