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.c The Associated Press
HAVANA, Cuba
(AP) - U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms raised eyebrows among Vatican officials when his
letter to Pope John Paul II, expressing his hope the papal visit would help end
communism in Cuba, ended up reaching some reporters first.
Staff members of the North Carolina Republican apparently had asked American
representatives in Havana to distribute the letter to reporters Thursday, but
without instructions to wait for confirmation that the pope had received it
first.
When copies appeared on a press table at a Havana hotel, Vatican staffers
removed them - but not before some were picked up by reporters.
Papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls expressed "surprise'' Friday that
the private letter to the pope was made public almost at the same time it was
received by John Paul.
Navarro-Valls did not comment on the contents of the letter, dated
Wednesday, in which Helms recalled the pope's 1979 visit to communist Poland and
said it "inspired the Polish people to cast off the shackles of their
oppression.''
"It is my hope that the Cuban people will be similarly inspired by your
visit to their country,'' Helms wrote.
Helms has been a vociferous critic of Cuba's communist leader, Fidel Castro,
and a strong supporter of the U.S. embargo against Cuba.
AP-NY-01-23-98 1738EST |