From: sangu@igc.apc.org (David Sangurima)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.latin-america
Subject: IPS:Dom Rep:Pope Urged no to Say Ma
Date: 10 Oct 92 03:04:00 GMT
Nf-ID: #N:cdp:1473800344:000:3992
Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!sangu    Oct  9 20:04:00 1992


From: David Sangurima <sangu>
Subject: IPS:Dom Rep:Pope Urged no to Say Mass

/* Written 12:11 am  Oct  9, 1992 by newsdesk in cdp:ips.englibrary */
/* ---------- "DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: POPE URGED NOT " ---------- */
Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all rights reserved.  Permission to re-
print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Reference: Latin America
Title: DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: POPE URGED NOT TO SAY MASS AT MILLION DLR

monument

santo domingo, oct 6 (ips/vianco martinez) -- dominican groups
have urged pope john paul ii not to officiate at a mass scheduled
to be held at a multi-million dollar monument built here for the
columbus quincentenary.

the dominican chapter of the continental campaign on 500 years
of indigenous black and popular resistance said in a communique
sent to the pope via the papal nunciate that the ''columbus
lighthouse'' was a symbol of conquest and extermination and that
its construction had political implications.

with just a few days to go before pope john paul ii arrives
here on oct. 9, the dominican republic is plunged in an
atmosphere of tension as a result of protests in various parts of
the caribbean country.

dominican groups have been protesting over the past few months
against the millions spent on the lighthouse and on official
ceremonies linked to the quincentenary, in a country where
50 percent of the population lives below the poverty line.

the protests include a strike tuesday in two sections of santo
domingo and seven communities in other parts of the country, amid
beefed-up police presence at strategic points in the capital.

''the government has engaged in a multi-million dollar
spending campaign, to the detriment of the impoverished sectors
of the country,''the dominican chapter of the continental
resistance campaign said in a communique sent to the pope via the
papal nunciate here.

the organization includes social and religious groups opposed
to the quincentenary festivities.

pope john paul ii is scheduled to visit the dominican republic
from oct. 9 to 14. his main activities will be officiating at a
mass on the esplanade of the columbus lighthouse and inaugurating
the fourth latin american general episcopal conference (celam)
which begins on oct. 12.

the lighthouse, inaugurated tuesday, was reportedly built at a
cost of eight million dollars, according to opposition estimates,
and an unquantifiable human cost.

in its message to the pope, the dominican group said the
construction of the monument had grave consequences for
dominicans.

these include the dislodging of thousands of families and the
diversion of important economic resources which should have been
invested in development areas neglected by the authorities.
(more)
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''while the government builds the columbus lighthouse and
beautifies the town there are women who have nowhere to give
birth to their children,'' the group said.

''with the money spent on the columbus lighthouse, at least
350,000 children could have had access to school this (academic)
year, which has just begun,'' it added.

the group said the 500th anniversary of the arrival of
europeans in the americas ought not to be a reason for a national
fiesta, but the starting point for an in-depth reflection on the
past, present and future of the peoples of the americas.

''the colonial enterprise was and is a fact which -- apart
from the contributions it might have made to humanity -- brought,
in its form and essence, vices, burdens and lifestyles which do
not correspond to the essence and human dignity which many
sectors in latin america, including christians, defend.''

the identity of the peoples of the american continent was
deeply wounded and their resources subjected to plunder, which is
not exactly a source of pride or jubilation for humanity, the
group added.

''the sad reality which our peoples today experience has much
to do with that historical event,'' it pointed out.
(end/ips/trd/so/vm/kb/92)
----