Pope Francis left on Friday for a three-day visit to South Sudan, the youngest country in the world, with the intention of promoting peace and reconciliation in the conflict-torn country still suffering from the effects of civil war and extreme poverty.
Francis is due to land in Juba at 1500 (1300 GMT), marking the first papal visit to South Sudan since the predominantly Christian nation gained independence from Muslim-majority Sudan in 2011 after decades of conflict.
Peace has eluded South Sudan even as a state: a five-year civil war has resulted in 380,000 deaths, four million displaced people, and deep impoverishment of the young country.
The 86-year-old pontiff is expected to meet with the victims of the conflict, as well as the country’s political and church leaders, between prayers and an outdoor mass that is expected to attract large crowds.
The visit – Francis’ fifth visit to Africa – was originally scheduled for 2022 but had to be postponed due to problems with the pope’s knee.
The illness made him dependent on a wheelchair and shortened the route in both countries.
In South Sudan, he will be joined by the Archbishop of Canterbury and Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland on what is known as the “Pilgrimage for Peace”.
Hope for the world
The visit is long overdue in a devout country of 12 million where the church is a deeply respected institution with a long history of peacebuilding.
“I am very happy to see him,” said Hana Zachariah, 20, to Agence France-Presse (AFP), one of dozens of pilgrims who walked from the city of Rumbek to Juba for nine days, covering about 400 kilometers (250 kilometres). miles), in an attempt to see the pope.
In 2019, Francis promised to travel to South Sudan when he hosted the country’s two warring leaders, President Salva Kiir and his deputy, Riek Machar, in a Vatican retreat and asked them to honor a hard-won ceasefire for their people.
In scenes that swept across South Sudan, where 60 percent of the population is Christian, an Argentinean knelt down and kissed the feet of two enemies whose private armies had been accused of horrendous war crimes.
But four years later, South Sudan is still mired in intractable conflict, and hopes are pinned on Francis to foster much-needed unity in a country torn apart by ethnic and political divisions.
“We suffered a lot. Now we want to make peace,” said Robert Michael, a 36-year-old businessman, under one of the many tall billboards in Juba welcoming the pope.
Friday is declared a day off. Officials urged South Sudanese to show up in droves, but offered no estimate of how many people are expected to attend the Pope’s speeches.
Roads in the capital were paved for the occasion, and security officials said on Wednesday that another 5,000 police and soldiers would take to the streets.
Famous visit to DR Congo
The visit follows a three-day stop in Kinshasa, the capital of neighboring DRC, where bloody conflict in the mineral-rich east has been the focus of the pope.
It was the first time since 1985 that the Pope has visited the deeply troubled country the size of continental Western Europe, which has the largest number of Catholics in Africa.
Before boarding his plane on Friday, the Pope, looking weary, urged the Congolese bishops to focus on the people and not just “political activities.”
About 40 percent of the DRC’s population of over 100 million is estimated to be Roman Catholic, and the church retains enormous influence.
Earlier on his trip, Francis had criticized the “brutal atrocities” after hearing heartbreaking stories from eastern Congo, including testimonies from victims of sexual assault and mutilation at the hands of militias.
The Pope also called for mercy from God.
“May he convert the hearts of those who commit cruel atrocities that dishonor all mankind,” said the Pope.
He added that the conflict was fueled by greed for resources at the expense of innocent victims and denounced “economic colonialism” in the troubled region.
Francis also staged a mega mass at the Kinshasa airport and pleaded with young Congolese to avoid corruption in a crowded stadium filled with tens of thousands of people.
