Pope can help bring peace to Mindanao, says cardinal

Hopes for pontiff to visit 'victims of the man-made disaster'.

Cardinal Orlando Quevedo of Cotabato, right, with retired Cardinal Ricardo Vidal of Cebu.

Manila:  Philippine Cardinal Orlando Quevedo of Cotabato said he believes that Pope Francis could help advance the peace process in the southern Philippines, just as he did on his visit to the Middle East early this month.

Pope Francis is scheduled to visit typhoon victims during a visit to the Philippines in January, which follows a two-day trip to Sri Lanka.

In discussing the papal trip, Cardinal Quevedo said he hoped the pontiff would also visit Mindanao, where government and rebel forces had been locked in a four-decade conflict.

"If he will visit disaster victims [in Tacloban], I hope he will also visit the victims of the man-made disaster in Mindanao," the cardinal told ucanews.com.

Regarding the peace process, Cardinal Quevedo said that if the pope was able to push for peace in the Middle East, he could also "perhaps push for peace in Mindanao".

"[Pope Francis] gave a very good message not only in words, but also in gestures, calling for peace and reconciliation in the Middle East particularly between the Palestinians and the Israelis," Cardinal Quevedo said at the launch of the 51st International Eucharistic Congress in Manila on Tuesday.

The cardinal told ucanews.com that a Vatican official will be attending the semi-annual meeting of the Philippine bishops' conference in July to discuss the pope’s itinerary.

Details on the trip have not been finalized, the cardinal said. The cardinal said he remained "optimistic" about peace in the southern Philippines after the government and rebel Moro Islamic Liberation Front signed a peace agreement in March.

Source: ucanews.com