(from our correspondents in Australia) – "Instruments of forgiveness for the whole nation": this is the hope with which they come to Sydney to participate in World Youth Day (15-20 July). They are the youth of East Timor; they belong to the parish of the Infant Jesus in the capital, Dili. Fifteen boys and girls "who have never left their country before", says Canossian Sister Domingas Dias, speaking to SIR. Their hopes and longings are testified by the tears "of joy" that run down their faces as they meet fellow-youngsters from all over the world before the Telstra Dome in Melbourne, where they will participate in the mass that officially opens the "Days in the Dioceses". "They’ve never seen so large a congregation of young people and are deeply moved. The memories of war and violence are still vivid in their minds. The hope is that this WYD may help to heal these memories. We have prepared this WYD by speaking of the witness of the Gospel explains Father Graciano Santos Barros, of the seminary of Our Lady at Balide -; we’re all agreed in saying that proclaiming the Word in East Timor means spreading the message of forgiveness and working for reconciliation and justice. It’s what these youngsters propose to do once they have returned home". The delegation from East Timor in Melbourne will in the days ahead join up with their companions in Sydney and altogether some 300 of them will follow the official programme of WYD. Their return home is scheduled for 24 July.
