PM, President to meet Pope
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, Oct 30 — Even as the government today promised to work for creating a "conducive atmosphere" during the visit of Pope John Paul commencing from November 5, the church expressed its disappointment over the government’s decision of not allowing the live coverage of the pastoral aspects of the visit including the Asian Synod on November 6 and the Holy Mass on November 7, on Doordarshan.

Talking to reporters, the spokesman for the Catholic Bishop Conference, Dr Dominic Emmanuel, said while the government had communicated that the inter-faith meeting at Vigyan Bhavan on November 7 would be covered live by Doordarshan and the All-India Radio, the other two functions that of the meeting with bishops of the Asian Synod and promulgation of the Synod Document at Sacred Cathedral on November 6 and the Holy Mass for the conclusion of Special Assembly of Asian Synod bishops at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium would not be covered live by Doordarshan.

However, the church may again approach the government to allow live telecast of the two functions to be attended by the Pope, the spokesman said.

"Some 24 million Indian Christians, among them 16 million Roman Catholics, would have been able to participate in the mass, if there was a live telecast", he pointed out.

Dr Emmanuel and his colleagues have held a meeting with the Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, Mr Arun Jaitley, to convince the government for the need for a live coverage of the pastoral aspects of the Pope’s visit but the government continued to drag its feet on the issue.

The issue came up for discussions at a meeting between representatives of the Ministry of External Affairs and the church here today.

The AIR was still awaiting clearance from higher ups for live broadcast of the Holy Mass and Sacred Cathedral , Dr Emmanuel said.

When asked about the government’s decision, Dr Emmanuel said: "We respect the government’s decision for whatever reasons".

At the same time, the spokesman said there was tremendous interest in a live coverage of the two functions not only in the country, but also the world over. The programmes, however, would be available on the website live, Dr Emmanuel said, adding that the Government had given clearance for private channels to up-link for the live telecast of the Holy Mass function. Among those who have shown an interest in carrying a live feed are Asia Net, Surya TV, Jain TV, BBC and European Broadcasting Union.

Replying to questions, Dr Emmanuel ruled out any talks between the Pope and representatives of the VHP and the Bajrang Dal.

Stating that the Pope would have neither time nor "perhaps inclination for this", he said asking "who is the VHP for the Pope".

On the repeated demands from Hindu organisations for an apology from the Pope for the inquisition in Goa, Dr Emmanuel said atrocities and persecution had been committed in the name of one religion against another throughout history. "We all need to seek pardon from one another", he said.

As for reported statements of the VHP leader, Acharya Giriraj Kishore, terming the Pope a "dacoit", Dr Emmanuel said: "All I can say is forgive them my Lord, for they do not know what they are saying or doing".

The Pope, leading a high-powered delegation, would hold wide-ranging discussions with the President, Mr K. R. Narayanan, focussing mainly on further consolidation of bilateral ties between the Vatican and India, an External Affairs Ministry spokesman told reporters here.

The Vice-President, Mr Krishan Kant, and the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, would call on the Pontiff during the two-day state visit.

"As a host country, we will fulfil all our obligations and ensure there is a conducive atmosphere. Full security will be provided to ensure that the visit goes off smoothly," the spokesman said when asked about the protests planned by some Sangh Parivar outfits.