Pope Francis was yesterday to close his visit to Chile with an open-air Mass on the beach, before leaving for Peru on the last leg of his South American trip.
The pope’s homily at the Mass for tens of thousands of pilgrims at Lobitos Beach, near the northern city of Iquique, was expected to focus on immigration.
About 1,800km north of the capital, Santiago, the city has been a huge draw for illegal immigrants from Chile’s poorer neighbors, helping to drive an economic boom.
More than half a million registered foreign nationals live in Chile, 3 percent of the country’s population of 17.5 million, but there are growing concerns about increasing illegal immigration from poor countries, such as Haiti and Venezuela.
Following the Mass, the 81-year-old pontiff was scheduled to meet with victims of the brutal 1973 to 1990 dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, before flying directly to Peru’s capital, Lima, in the evening.
Demonstrations against Catholic Church sex abuse scandals and attacks on churches marked the opening days of his visit to Chile.
The pope on Wednesday celebrated Mass in a restive region of southern Chile, denouncing the use of violence in the struggle for indigenous rights, only hours after assailants firebombed churches and other targets.
The Argentine-born pontiff was shining the spotlight on the simmering conflict between the state and the Mapuche people, who centuries ago controlled vast areas of Chile, but have since been marginalized.
At the first public Mass in Santiago on Tuesday, he faced protests over the handling of decades of sexual abuse by the clergy.
Later, the pope met privately with a small group of people sexually abused by priests, after he publicly asked for forgiveness.
However, in Temuco the papal spotlight turned to the Mapuche, who account for 7 percent of Chile’s population, but hold only 5 percent of their ancestral lands.
Francis then met with a group of indigenous people before returning to Santiago, where he met with youth groups at the Maipu shrine outside the city and visited the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile.
“Never think you have nothing to offer or that nobody cares about you. Never!” he told the young people, who gave him an enthusiastic welcome. “All of us are necessary and important. All of us have something to offer.”
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