IN BRIEF

CARDINAL RENATO MARTINO, PRESIDENT OF THE Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, is presiding today, May 21 at a study session on the social and economic development of Africa in the era of globalization in the Rome headquarters of this dicastery. Participants in this meeting include cardinals from Africa, ambassadors from African countries accredited to the Holy See, experts on the above-mentioned topics and leaders from international organizations, including the United Nations, Catholic Relief Services, the Sant'Egidio Community and the Earth Institute of Columbia University. The morning session was presided over by Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, secretary for Relations with States, who spoke on Pope John Paul's solicitude for Africa. Other speakers addressed the problem of conflicts in Africa and reconciliation. The afternoon session is scheduled to focus on the chronic problems of the continent, including pandemic illnesses, poverty and foreign debt.

MSGR. PIERO MONNI, HOLY SEE PERMANENT OBSERVER to the World Tourism Organization, spoke yesterday in Rimini, Italy at the 42nd meeting of the WTO's Regional Commission for Europe at a seminar entitled "The Future of Traditional Destinations: Will Their Experience be useful to Emerging Countries of Europe?" He highlighted the problems linked to competition between traditional tourism destinations and those of  emerging countries in Eastern Europe. Europe offers a variety of tourist destinations, and "there are great hopes that these sites will reveal values that for years have been marginalized, that is, cultural, moral and spiritual values. ... Competition within the 'global village' has problems similar to those of the European dimension, whose Christian roots we cannot ignore, roots which are perceptible even in many emerging sites. It is always respect for these values which can help develop sustainable tourism and a greater attention to and sensitivity for culture and local traditions."
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