Tuesday, February 7, 2023
manilastandard.net
ADVERTISEMENT
  • About
  • News
    • Top Stories
    • National
    • World News
    • Pinoy Abroad
    • Features
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Columns
    • Soundbytes
  • LGUs
    • NCR
    • Luzon
    • Visayas
    • Mindanao
  • Business
    • Corporate
    • Economy & Trade
    • Stocks
    • Money
    • Agri & Mining
    • Power & Tech
    • IT & Telecom
  • Sports
    • Basketball
    • Volleyball
    • Fightsports
    • Active
    • Sports Plus
    • One Championship
    • Columns
  • Entertainment
    • TV & Movies
    • Celebrity Profiles
    • Music & Concerts
    • Digital Media
    • Columns
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Culture & Media
    • Fashion
    • Health and Home
    • Leisure
    • Shopping
    • Columns
  • Others
    • Pets
    • Pop.Life
      • Newsmakers
      • Hangouts
      • A-Pop
      • Post Its
      • Performances
      • Malls & Bazaars
      • Hobbies & Collections
    • Technology
      • Gadgets
      • Computers
      • Business
      • Tech Plus
    • MS ON THE ROAD
      • Sedan
      • SUV
      • Truck
      • Bike
      • Accessories
      • Motoring Plus
      • Commuter’s Corner
    • Home & Design
      • Residential
      • Commercial
      • Construction
      • Interior
    • Spotlight
    • Gallery
      • Photos
      • Videos
    • Events
      • Seminars
      • Exhibits
      • Community
    • Biyahero
      • Travel Features
      • Travel Reels
      • Travel Logs
  • Advertise with Us
No Result
View All Result
  • About
  • News
    • Top Stories
    • National
    • World News
    • Pinoy Abroad
    • Features
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Columns
    • Soundbytes
  • LGUs
    • NCR
    • Luzon
    • Visayas
    • Mindanao
  • Business
    • Corporate
    • Economy & Trade
    • Stocks
    • Money
    • Agri & Mining
    • Power & Tech
    • IT & Telecom
  • Sports
    • Basketball
    • Volleyball
    • Fightsports
    • Active
    • Sports Plus
    • One Championship
    • Columns
  • Entertainment
    • TV & Movies
    • Celebrity Profiles
    • Music & Concerts
    • Digital Media
    • Columns
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Culture & Media
    • Fashion
    • Health and Home
    • Leisure
    • Shopping
    • Columns
  • Others
    • Pets
    • Pop.Life
      • Newsmakers
      • Hangouts
      • A-Pop
      • Post Its
      • Performances
      • Malls & Bazaars
      • Hobbies & Collections
    • Technology
      • Gadgets
      • Computers
      • Business
      • Tech Plus
    • MS ON THE ROAD
      • Sedan
      • SUV
      • Truck
      • Bike
      • Accessories
      • Motoring Plus
      • Commuter’s Corner
    • Home & Design
      • Residential
      • Commercial
      • Construction
      • Interior
    • Spotlight
    • Gallery
      • Photos
      • Videos
    • Events
      • Seminars
      • Exhibits
      • Community
    • Biyahero
      • Travel Features
      • Travel Reels
      • Travel Logs
  • Advertise with Us
No Result
View All Result
manilastandard.net
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Pope on 2-day visit to Malta for migrants

AFPbyAFP
March 31, 2022, 6:40 pm
in News, World News
Reading Time: 3 mins read
A A
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on Email

Vatican City—Pope Francis heads Saturday for a two-day trip to Catholic-majority Malta where he will again highlight the plight of migrants, as the Ukraine war sends a stream of refugees across Europe.

The 85-year-old pontiff is the third pope since 1990 to visit the tiny Mediterranean archipelago, where Saint Paul was said to have shipwrecked in 60 AD—and which wears its religion proudly.

Catholicism is part of the constitution, and 85 percent of the just over half-a-million residents declare themselves believers, while Malta is the only EU country that completely bans abortion.

But Malta is also a key destination for Pope Francis for its frontline role in managing the mass influx of migrants who try to reach Europe, with thousands arriving here by sea over the years.

During five speeches, one of them at a migrant centre, the pontiff is expected to1 repeat his calls for a better welcome for these arrivals—particularly since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has created a fresh migrant crisis on Europe’s eastern flank.

ADVERTISEMENT

“Malta is symbolic in several ways,” said Bernard Valero, a former French diplomat and expert on the Mediterranean region, noting its strategic positioning between Europe and Africa and a “scene of the migration tragedy”.

“And the islands themselves — with a history of shipwrecks, of Saint Paul, of migration—have a very strong religious symbolism”, he told AFP.

Even in normal times, religion is evident everywhere in Malta, from the historic churches—often illuminated —to the streets where crosses are suspended above the road.

Ahead of the pope’s visit, key sites have been spruced up, with new pavements laid, although preparations were forced to take a back seat due to March 26 general elections.

No sooner had the Labour government declared re-election, however, the political billboards were replaced with pictures of the smiling pontiff.

Seeking refuge

A key moment of the pope’s trip to Malta will be his visit Sunday to meet migrants living at the peace centre set up in honor of former pope John XXIII.

The Hal Far peace lab was founded five decades ago by a Franciscan friar, Dionysius Mintoff, who still runs it today, aged 91, with the help of volunteers.

He proudly displays a birthday message Francis sent him last year, and told AFP ahead of the visit: “After Pope John, he is number one.”

Mintoff is currently preparing for the arrival of refugees from Ukraine — a conflict the pope has repeatedly condemned, calling for an end to the “massacre” and the “rivers of blood”.

Speaking at his weekly audience on Wednesday, the pope said he was looking forward to visiting the “luminous land” of Malta and paid tribute to the welcome it had shown to “so many brothers and sisters seeking refuge”.

Malta has been accused by NGOs of refusing to help migrant boats in distress in its waters, but it insists that it takes a disproportionate share.

Health problems

After arriving Saturday morning, the pope will meet with Prime Minister Robert Abela, and give a speech to officials and diplomats.

He will take a catamaran trip from the harbor at the capital Valletta to the island of Gozo, where he will preside over a prayer meeting at the national shrine of Ta ‘Pinu.

On Sunday, he will visit the Grotto of St. Paul, the patron saint of the island, and celebrate mass in a square in Floriana before a 10,000-strong crowd.

The visit — which had been planned in 2020 but postponed due to coronavirus — has been meticulously organized to accommodate the pope’s health needs.

“He has health problems, which include knee and vision issues, so we have to count every step,” Carlo Schembri, who designed the areas where Francis will speak, told the Times of Malta daily.

Francis underwent an operation to his colon last summer and cancelled a trip to Florence in February because of knee pain.

Tags: MaltamigrantsPope FrancisVatican City
ADVERTISEMENT
AFP

AFP

Related Posts

30th Travel Tour Expo 2023 ties up with PLDT Enterprise

byMST Tech
February 7, 2023, 2:25 pm
0
8

The 30th Travel Tour Expo 2023, the largest travel event of the year,  recently held its media launch at The...

Read more

Disney+ in Hong Kong drops ‘Simpsons’ episode with ‘forced labour’ mention

byAFP
February 7, 2023, 1:00 pm
0
8
Disney+ in Hong Kong drops ‘Simpsons’ episode with ‘forced labour’ mention

An episode of "The Simpsons" that refers to "forced labour camps" in China is nowhere to be found on the...

Read more

Earthquake kills more than 4,300 in Turkey, Syria

byAFP
February 7, 2023, 11:23 am
0
8
Earthquake kills more than 4,300 in Turkey, Syria

Rescuers in Turkey and Syria dug with their bare hands through the freezing night Tuesday hunting for survivors among the...

Read more

Japanese ‘Luffy’ criminal ringleaders deported from Philippines

byAFP
February 7, 2023, 11:00 am
0
8
Japanese ‘Luffy’ criminal ringleaders deported from Philippines

Two of the four suspects believed to be behind a spate of robberies and telephone fraud cases across Japan were...

Read more

North Korea pledges ‘expanded, intensified’ military drills

byAFP
February 7, 2023, 10:00 am
0
8
North Korea pledges ‘expanded, intensified’ military drills

North Korea's top army officials have said they will expand and intensify military drills to ensure their readiness for war,...

Read more

SRP for onions set at P125/k

byMaricel Cruzand1 others
February 7, 2023, 1:40 am
0
8
Can’t afford onions per kilo? DA says buy per piece

PBBM okays move to rein in inflation, limits middlemen in trading The Department of Agriculture has set the suggested retail...

Read more

Print Edition

View More

Recent Posts

  • Morada, Bernardo win Iran badminton tourney
  • Buying bonds just got easier with ATRAM Prime
  • Binance Academy launches scholarship program to enhance Web 3.0 education in PH
  • CineMapúa upgrades to International Short Film Festival on 20th anniversary
  • Smart Live Presents Harry Styles’ ‘Love on Tour’ Concert on March 14
  • 5 Argentine rugby players sentenced to life for shocking murder
  • Data breaches, ransomware: Are you prepared or paying?
  • Andrade believes he has psychological advantage over Lineker 

Advertisement

Latest News

5 Argentine rugby players sentenced to life for shocking murder

byManila Standard Sports
February 7, 2023, 3:26 pm
0
8
5 Argentine rugby players sentenced to life for shocking murder

DOLORES, Argentina (AFP) -- A court in Argentina on Monday sentenced five amateur rugby players from the same team to...

Read more

Data breaches, ransomware: Are you prepared or paying?

byMST Tech
February 7, 2023, 2:49 pm
0
8
Data breaches, ransomware: Are you prepared or paying?

By Pierre Samson, Chief Revenue Officer (CRO), Hackuity Ransomware attacks have become a serious threat. The Philippines has become the...

Read more

Andrade believes he has psychological advantage over Lineker 

byManila Standard Sports
February 7, 2023, 2:46 pm
0
8
Andrade believes he has psychological advantage over Lineker 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vib7P3kH_U0 Things may have not ended the way Fabricio “Wonder Boy” Andrade wanted in his first attempt at the ONE Bantamweight World...

Read more

Japan-affiliated telco InfiniVAN, partners kickstart PDSCN Phase II of longest, largest domestic subsea cable system

byMST Tech
February 7, 2023, 2:39 pm
0
8
Japan-affiliated telco InfiniVAN, partners kickstart PDSCN Phase II of longest, largest domestic subsea cable system

SUBIC, ZAMBALES – The InfiniVAN-led Philippine Domestic Submarine Cable Network (PDSCN) project entered Phase 2 of the longest, largest domestic...

Read more

Vertiv completes CEO succession 

byMST Tech
February 7, 2023, 2:35 pm
0
8
Vertiv completes CEO succession 

Columbus, Ohio – Vertiv (NYSE: VRT), a global provider of critical digital infrastructure and continuity solutions, today announced that on January 1, 2023, Giordano Albertazzi assumed the...

Read more

Advertisement

ADVERTISEMENT
Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube

ABOUT US

Manila Standard

Manila Standard website (manilastandard.net), launched in August 2002, extends the newspaper’s reach beyond its traditional readers and makes its brand of Philippine news and opinion available to a much wider and geographically diverse readership here and overseas.

Digital Edition

In tone and content, the online edition mirrors the editorial thrust of the newspaper. While hewing to the traditional precepts of fairness and objectivity, MS believes the news of the day need not be staid, overly long or dry. Stories are succinct, readable and written in a lively style that has become a hallmark of the newspaper.

Download – Today’s Paper

Search

No Result
View All Result

6th Floor Universal Re Bldg., 106 Paseo De Roxas cor. Perea Street, Legaspi Village, 1226 Makati City Philippines

Trunklines: 832-5554, 832-5556, 832-5558

© 2021 Manila Standard - Designed and Developed by Neitiviti Studios.

No Result
View All Result
  • About
  • News
    • Top Stories
    • National
    • World News
    • Pinoy Abroad
    • Features
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Columns
    • Soundbytes
  • LGUs
    • NCR
    • Luzon
    • Visayas
    • Mindanao
  • Business
    • Corporate
    • Economy & Trade
    • Stocks
    • Money
    • Agri & Mining
    • Power & Tech
    • IT & Telecom
  • Sports
    • Basketball
    • Volleyball
    • Fightsports
    • Active
    • Sports Plus
    • One Championship
    • Columns
  • Entertainment
    • TV & Movies
    • Celebrity Profiles
    • Music & Concerts
    • Digital Media
    • Columns
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Culture & Media
    • Fashion
    • Health and Home
    • Leisure
    • Shopping
    • Columns
  • Pop.Life
    • Newsmakers
    • Hangouts
    • A-Pop
    • Post Its
    • Performances
    • Malls & Bazaars
    • Hobbies & Collections
  • Technology
    • Gadgets
    • Computers
    • Business
    • Tech Plus
  • MS ON THE ROAD
    • Sedan
    • SUV
    • Truck
    • Bike
    • Accessories
    • Motoring Plus
    • Commuter’s Corner
  • Home & Design
    • Residential
    • Commercial
    • Construction
    • Interior
  • Spotlight
  • Gallery
    • Photos
    • Videos
  • Events
    • Seminars
    • Exhibits
    • Community
  • Biyahero
    • Travel Features
    • Travel Reels
    • Travel Logs
  • Pets
  • Advertise with Us

© 2021 Manila Standard - Designed and Developed by Neitiviti Studios.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Install Manila Standard Web App

Install App