{Pope Francis has arrived in Sri Lanka at the start of a six-day Asian visit which is expected to draw huge crowds.}<\/p>\n
The pontiff, who will later travel to the Philippines, plans to celebrate open-air masses during his trip.<\/p>\n
It is the first papal visit to Sri Lanka since the end of a four-decade civil war in 2009.<\/p>\n
The country’s new president, elected last week, has promised an end to growing repression of religious minorities.<\/p>\n
The Pope’s trip, which comes five months after a tour of South Korea, is being seen as an attempt to win new followers in Asia and to shore up support for the region’s millions of Catholics.<\/p>\n
Before departing on Monday, he said the visit reflected his “pastoral concern” for the people of the region, according to the Reuters news agency.<\/p>\n
Large crowds of people lined the streets of the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo, on Tuesday to greet his motorcade.<\/p>\n
{{BBC}}<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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