 Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, a devout Roman Catholic, defied EU sanctions including a travel ban when he arrived in Rome to attend the funeral of Pope John Paul II.
| "Hi! I'm here! Hey! Where's the Pope?" |
The 81-year-old leader, who was married in a Catholic church and once referred to the Pope as his spiritual father, was accompanied on the trip by Higher Education Minister Herbert Murerwa, Zimbabwe's state radio said. Telenews, a channel that monitors flight arrivals and departures in Rome, said Mugabe arrived at Fiumicino airport at 9am local time. The Vatican, a sovereign state, is not a member of the EU and has no airport but EU member Italy should normally comply with the travel ban imposed on Mugabe. However, under a 1929 pact between Italy and the Vatican, Italian authorities agreed not to stop visitors to the world's smallest state. |