Well done," Pope Benedict XVI told Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as she handed him a copy of the law she recently signed outlawing the death penalty in the Philippines.
At the end of a June 26 meeting with the pope, Arroyo gave the pope a statue of Our Lady of Guidance and a copy of the law in a leather case, telling him, "These are two expressions of the faith of the Filipino people."
After the pope gave her some medals, she spent a couple of moments digging in her purse before pulling out her rosary and asking Pope Benedict to bless it.
Earlier June 26 in Manila, Philippines, members of the opposition parties filed an impeachment complaint against Arroyo in the House of Representatives, alleging that she has condoned political killings and violated the constitution to silence dissent. She and her supporters deny the charges.
Notwithstanding the papal audience, Arroyo’s trip did not meet the approval of the whole national Church. Mgr Oscar Cruz, archbishop of Lingayen-Dagupan, said “given that there are questions about the legitimacy of the presidential election, it is not appropriate that Arroyo does to Benedict what she had done with John Paul II.” The archbishop was referring to post-electoral statements made by the president, who in 2004, had said her election “had the blessing of John Paul II, the Pope whose heart was arguably closest to Filipinos”.
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