On January 15, 2015 - Pope Francis had finally arrived at the Manila Airport (Villamor Airbase), Philippines. A huge crowd of Filipino people were already gathered around the streets even from the time when the Pope's plane had just landed on the airport. And when Pope Francis came out from the plane, the people started jumping with joy, clapping and cheering.
Pope Francis was warmly welcomed by a festive atmosphere. There were actually about 1,500 school children who prepared an entertaining lively dance waving some kind of white cloths and blue umbrellas (with red, white and blue color representing the Philippine flag). But, the most catchy part were their shirt with printed message that goes "Mabuhay Pope Francis!".
After meeting various top government officials and fellow Filipino priests, he was escorted into his "Pope-Mobile". He stood at the back of his vehicle which has no protective walls despite of the several threats against him. As the pope-mobile started to move, Pope Francis also began waving his hand and smiling from the huge crowd of Filipino people. The trip took about 35 minutes starting from the airport to the Vatican's Embassy where he will take his rest for the night.
In the past, there were already two cases of popes that got nearly assassinated in Manila. Pope Paul VI was the first victim in 1970 where a Bolivian Artist dressed as a priest had tried to stab him just after his arrival from the airport. The second pontiff was Pope John Paul II where the police authorities heard an accidental-fire from the militant's rented apartment.
Today, Pope Francis' visit to the Philippines surely does involve the same risk (assassination attempts) that occurred in the past. Due to this reason, the government authorities had deployed about 50, 000 soldiers and police around the city of Manila. Three days ago, President Benigno Aquino had even personally inspected the motorcade routes and public venues to ensure the security of the pope.
Snipers were also positioned at various spots around Manila so as sniffer dogs were on patrol. In fact, Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas had even offered himself to become a personal bodyguard of the pope.
Concerns to the authorities even became worse as the pontiff decides not to travel in a bullet-proof vehicle exposing himself at a higher risk. His reasons was to be able to get closer to the faithful people around him. So with such risks, the president had made a national television announcement asking all Filipinos to help the authorities in protecting the pontiff.
With all of those security for the pope, this day had made its mark in the Philippine history as one of the biggest security operations held in the country.
As the fourth pope to visit the Philippines, his main purpose is actually to pay a visit to the victims of the Super Typhoon Haiyan in 2013. This was the typhoon that took 7,350 (other sources claims its 6,300) Filipino lives. Thus, Pope Francis is scheduled to conduct a mass on Saturday in Tacloban with an expected 2 million people to attend.
Pope Francis' real complete name is "Jorge Mario Bergoglio". He is an Italian-blooded Latin American who came from a migrant family. Surprisingly, Pope Francis lived in a large Catholic country with millions in poverty. Other than the poverty, he also struggled under a dictatorship.
The time came when Pope Francis had decided to visit the Philippines from January 15 to 19 of 2015. He even came up with a preferred nickname for the Filipinos to call him. Filipinos can actually call him as "Lolo Kiko" (lolo means "grandfather" while Kiko is derived from the name "Francisco").
According to Pope Francis, Philippines is very close to his heart because it looks very similar to his home country.
Moreover, the government had made an official declaration of a three-day public holiday in order to clear the traffic in Manila, the main capital of the country consisting of 12 million Filipino people. The Philippine financial markets were also closed.
Pope Francis was warmly welcomed by a festive atmosphere. There were actually about 1,500 school children who prepared an entertaining lively dance waving some kind of white cloths and blue umbrellas (with red, white and blue color representing the Philippine flag). But, the most catchy part were their shirt with printed message that goes "Mabuhay Pope Francis!".
After meeting various top government officials and fellow Filipino priests, he was escorted into his "Pope-Mobile". He stood at the back of his vehicle which has no protective walls despite of the several threats against him. As the pope-mobile started to move, Pope Francis also began waving his hand and smiling from the huge crowd of Filipino people. The trip took about 35 minutes starting from the airport to the Vatican's Embassy where he will take his rest for the night.
Pope Francis' Security
In the past, there were already two cases of popes that got nearly assassinated in Manila. Pope Paul VI was the first victim in 1970 where a Bolivian Artist dressed as a priest had tried to stab him just after his arrival from the airport. The second pontiff was Pope John Paul II where the police authorities heard an accidental-fire from the militant's rented apartment.
Today, Pope Francis' visit to the Philippines surely does involve the same risk (assassination attempts) that occurred in the past. Due to this reason, the government authorities had deployed about 50, 000 soldiers and police around the city of Manila. Three days ago, President Benigno Aquino had even personally inspected the motorcade routes and public venues to ensure the security of the pope.
Snipers were also positioned at various spots around Manila so as sniffer dogs were on patrol. In fact, Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas had even offered himself to become a personal bodyguard of the pope.
Concerns to the authorities even became worse as the pontiff decides not to travel in a bullet-proof vehicle exposing himself at a higher risk. His reasons was to be able to get closer to the faithful people around him. So with such risks, the president had made a national television announcement asking all Filipinos to help the authorities in protecting the pontiff.
With all of those security for the pope, this day had made its mark in the Philippine history as one of the biggest security operations held in the country.
The Main Purpose of Pope Francis' Visit
As the fourth pope to visit the Philippines, his main purpose is actually to pay a visit to the victims of the Super Typhoon Haiyan in 2013. This was the typhoon that took 7,350 (other sources claims its 6,300) Filipino lives. Thus, Pope Francis is scheduled to conduct a mass on Saturday in Tacloban with an expected 2 million people to attend.
Who is Pope Francis?
Pope Francis' real complete name is "Jorge Mario Bergoglio". He is an Italian-blooded Latin American who came from a migrant family. Surprisingly, Pope Francis lived in a large Catholic country with millions in poverty. Other than the poverty, he also struggled under a dictatorship.
The time came when Pope Francis had decided to visit the Philippines from January 15 to 19 of 2015. He even came up with a preferred nickname for the Filipinos to call him. Filipinos can actually call him as "Lolo Kiko" (lolo means "grandfather" while Kiko is derived from the name "Francisco").
According to Pope Francis, Philippines is very close to his heart because it looks very similar to his home country.
Moreover, the government had made an official declaration of a three-day public holiday in order to clear the traffic in Manila, the main capital of the country consisting of 12 million Filipino people. The Philippine financial markets were also closed.
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