Pope and Peruvian president discuss Venezuela, upcoming papal visit

Vatican City, Sep 24, 2017 / 17:54 pm

Pope Francis met with Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski Friday to discuss the country's fight against poverty, the crisis in Venezuela and the Pope's upcoming visit, among other topics.

President Kuczynski, described the meeting to journalists at a Sept. 23 news briefing, saying "what we spoke about is what is happening in Peru, how little by little we are eliminating poverty in Peru (and) what is happening in the Peruvian government."

"We also spoke, naturally, about the visit of the Holy Father to Peru," he said, drawing attention to the trip Pope Francis will make to Peru and Chile in January 2018.

The president said preparations for the visit are going well, and that "almost everything is ready." Authorities are still deciding where the Pope's final Mass on the last day of the visit will be held, but "everything else in the trip is already organized."

The visit, announced in June, will take the Pope to Chile from January 15 to 18 and Peru from January 18 to 21, 2018. It will mark Francis' fourth official tour of Latin America since his election, after Brazil in 2013; Bolivia, Paraguay and Ecuador in 2015 and his recent visit to Colombia earlier this month.

In Chile the Pope will visit the capital of Santiago, and the cities of Temuco and Iquique. In Peru, he will visit the capital city of Lima, as well as Puerto Maldonado and Trujillo.

In his comments to journalists, President Kuczynski described his conversation with the Pope as "very friendly." The Pope offered several "proverbs" known in the Spanish language, he said, adding that "he is a man very knowledgeable in literature."

He and Francis also discussed the situation of former presidents of Peru, some of whom are currently in prison. The latest ex-president to be put behind bars is Ollanta Humal, who was jailed in July amid a corruption scandal that continues to unfold in the country.

Corruption was also naturally a part of the discussion, specifically "how the fight against corruption is going," Kuczynski said.

He explained that in his meeting with Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin that followed his conversation with the Pope, Peruvian leaders, after consulting with other governments, are planning to make a proposal to establish an "Inter-American Court against corruption" during the 2018 Summit of the Americas, set to take place in Lima.

The president also touched on Peru's complicated past, in many was still shrouded by the violence of the guerrilla group "the Shining Path," largely active in the 1980-90s, and the need for reconciliation.

"In Latin America, in all countries, we need reconciliation, and the visit of the Pope without doubt will immensely help this," Kuczynski said, noting that Peru itself "has been successful enough in reconciliation after the period of terrorism and hyperinflation that we had."

Another topic that has somewhat overshadowed the Church in Peru for the past two years is the scandal surrounding Luis Fernando Figari, a consecrated layman who founded the Sodalitium Christianae Vitae, a society of apostolic life, in 1971 in Peru. It was granted pontifical recognition in 1997, and is one of the most well-known communities in Peru.

It came into the international spotlight when in 2015 accusations of physical, sexual and psychological abuse were raised against Figari, which were proved to be true. Figari, who had been transferred to Rome, was then barred from any contact with the community as the result of an investigation carried out by Peruvian civil authorities.

Although the case is likely to come up at some point during the Pope's visit, President Kuczynski said the issue was not raised in his discussion with the Pope, as it is being handled "through other channels."

The president said his discussion with Cardinal Parolin also touched on the crisis in Venezuela, with both agreeing that "humanitarian aid must be allowed into Venezuela because there are many people who are sick, there are no medicines."

"The current government, for reasons of pride, is opposed to this," he said. Another mutual interest, then, is "to look for a dialogue so that there is a transitional system of government."

"We are all worried, we want to help," he said. "We think that a country that has the largest petroleum reserves in the world deserves a better destiny for their inhabitants."

Miguel Perez, Rome correspondent for CNA's Spanish-language sister agency ACI Prensa, contributed to this article.