JOHN PAUL II ARRIVES IN BANJA LUKA AT START OF 101ST TRIP

VATICAN CITY, JUN 22, 2003 (VIS) - After a trip of almost 90 minutes, Pope John Paul's plane landed this morning at 9:40 a.m. at Banja Luka International Airport, where he was welcomed by civil and religious officials at the start of his one-day trip to Bosnia-Herzegovina. He greeted the authorities present, the Catholic lay faithful and "our brothers and sisters of the Serbian Orthodox Church, of the other ecclesial communities, and the followers of Islam and Judaism."

"Knowing that I am entering your homes through radio and television," said the Holy Father, "I greet and embrace all of you, dear people living in the different parts of Bosnia-Herzegovina. I know the long ordeal you have endured, the burden of suffering which is daily a part of your lives, the temptations to discouragement and resignation which you experience. I stand beside you in asking the international community, which has already done so much, to continue to be close to you and to help you reach quickly a situation of full security in justice and harmony."

"You yourselves must be the primary builders of your future!" the Pope told them, adding that he knew that "starting afresh is not easy ... but it is nevertheless possible."

John Paul II remarked that "if society is to take on a truly human face and everyone is to look to the future with confidence, it is necessary to rebuild man from within, healing wounds and achieving a genuine purification of memory through mutual forgiveness. The root of every good and, sadly, of every evil is in the depths of the heart. It is there that change must occur, making it possible to renew the fabric of society and to establish human relationships, which favor cooperation between the vital forces of the country."

Of elected officials who "democratically govern the nation," he said: "May they not renounce this indispensable task because of present difficulties, nor should they let themselves be pressured by partisan interests." He added that the Catholic Church would do its part "through her various initiatives in the areas of education, aid and human development, in the free exercise of her specific mission."

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