- Title: Pope meets with Venezuelan cardinals
- Date: 7th September 2017
- Summary: BOGOTA, COLOMBIA (SEPTEMBER 7, 2017) (AGENCY POOL) EXTERIOR OF APOSTOLIC NUNCIATURE IN BOGOTA (SOUNDBITE) (Italian) CARDINAL JORGE UROSA SAVINO, CARDINAL OF CARACAS, SAYING: "The serious humanitarian problems because we are lacking food we are lacking medicine. We have the highest inflation in the world. An inflation of 700-800 thousand percent. A truly desperate situation. There are people who eat the garbage, yes there are people who eat garbage and there are people who die because there is no medicine. So, we want to remind the Pope of this again and especially the serious political situation because the government is doing everything possible to establish a state system, totalitarian and Marxist." VATICAN STEM ON APOSTOLIC NUNCIATURE (SOUNDBITE) (Italian) CARDINAL JORGE UROSA SAVINO, CARDINAL OF CARACAS, SAYING: "This political situation is becoming more serious every day. The Holy Father knows this but we want to remind the holy father to see what the pope can do to help the people of Venezuela." EXTERIOR OF APOSTOLIC NUNCIATURE IN BOGOTA (SOUNDBITE) (Italian) CARDINAL BALTAZAR PORRAS CARDOZO, CARDINAL OF MEDIRA, SAYING: "This meeting was called by the Holy Father for the Venezuelan Bishops because the relationship between the Holy See and the Holy Father is concrete and very close. He knows very well what the situation is and I think that this meeting is a real gift that the Pope is giving to all of the Venezuelan people through the bishops who are here." POPE ENTERING MEETING WITH EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF LATIN AMERICAN EPISCOPAL COUNCIL POPE SPEAKING WITH BISHOPS POPE SPEAKING WITH CARDINALS POPE SEATED LISTING TO INTRODUCTION
- Embargoed: 21st September 2017 23:58
- Keywords: Pope meeting Venezuelan cardinals
- Location: BOGOTA, COLOMBIA
- City: BOGOTA, COLOMBIA
- Country: Colombia
- Topics: Religion/Belief,Society/Social Issues
- Reuters ID: LVA0016XLNPZB
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Venezuela's Roman Catholic Church leaders said on Thursday (September 7) they would tell Pope Francis of the "truly desperate" humanitarian crisis in their country at a meeting they hoped would throw a spotlight on problems caused by political deadlock.
The Argentine pontiff is visiting Colombia and had asked bishops from neighbouring Venezuela to meet with him and brief him on the situation. The short meeting took place after the pope's Mass on Thursday night.
Cardinal Jorge Urosa Savino, the archbishop of Caracas, told reporters ahead of the meeting that his country was mired in "a truly desperate situation. There are people who eat garbage and there are people who die because there is no medicine."
Venezuela has been convulsed by months of near-daily demonstrations against leftist President Nicolas Maduro, who critics say has plunged the oil-rich country into the worst economic crisis in its history and is turning it into a dictatorship. - Copyright Holder: POOL (CAN SELL)
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