Pope hails Australia's apology to Aborigines

by Lawrence Bartlett

SYDNEY, July 17(AFP) - Pope Benedict XVI hailed the Australian government's apology to Aborigines for past injustices Thursday as he took charge of Catholic World Youth Day celebrations.

The pontiff was speaking at a formal welcoming ceremony attended by Governor-General Michael Jeffery, the representative of Australia's head of state, Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, and Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

"Thanks to the Australian government's courageous decision to acknowledge the injustices committed against the indigenous peoples in the past, concrete steps are now being taken to achieve reconciliation based on mutual respect," Benedict said.

"This example of reconciliation offers hope to peoples all over the world who long to see their rights affirmed and their contribution to society acknowledged and promoted."

Rudd delivered an historic apology to the Aboriginal people for injustices committed over two centuries of white settlement in an address to parliament in February.

The apology to indigenous people, who now make up just 470,000 of the population of 21 million and remain the poorest and most marginalised of Australians, was viewed as a watershed for the country.

But there was some confusion Thursday over whether the pope would deliver an apology of his own -- to Australian victims of sex abuse by Catholic clergymen, as the scandal cast a shadow over the world's biggest Christian festival. Benedict indicated to journalists on his plane on the way to Australia on Sunday that he would apologise but a Vatican official late Wednesday raised doubts over the issue.

"The pope in the plane spoke of the problems of sexual abuse but I don't think he said he would apologise and I advise you to listen to what the pope says," Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office, told journalists. In his address at the official welcoming ceremony, the pontiff said World Youth Day, which has drawn some 200,000 pilgrims to Sydney, "fills me with confidence for the future of the church and the future of our world."

Benedict then touched on what he had already flagged as one of the major themes of his visit -- care for the environment at a time when global warming is a major concern, particularly in Australia, the world's driest continent.

"With many thousands of young people visiting Australia at this time it is appropriate to reflect upon the kind of world we are handing on to future generations," he said.