(from our correspondents in Sydney) The 35 Burmese pilgrims to whom the Australian government has initially refused visas arrived in Sydney today, just as had happened in the case of the Iraqi delegation. "Only last Friday was a solution to the situation found, after the Australian bishops and the Most Rev. Fisher, WYD coordinator, had given assurances to the authorities that all of us, once WYD had ended, would return to our country", explains Father Philip Shwe, present in the Burmese delegation together with five other priests and three nuns. The Asian country (Myanmar) was recently a focus of international attention following the devastating Cyclone Nargis which struck the country on 2 May and the difficulties in the sending of international humanitarian aid due to the hostility of the military junta that rules the country. The pilgrims who have arrived for WYD also include two survivors of the cyclone. "We are very happy to have been able to arrive declares Tujan Mary, one of the 35 youngsters ; it was a difficult journey not only due to the problems about our visas, but also due to the costs of the travel, which was us were really high. But our eagerness to meet the Pope and other youth from all over the world did not make us give up, and so, helped by our parents, relations and friends, we finally succeeded, and even this last obstacle of the entry visas was overcome".
