Vatican welcomes Zimbabwe dictator

Dictator Robert Mugabe avoided an EU travel ban to witness the beatification of Pope John Paul ii at the Vatican May 1.

Mugabe was able to join the crowd of over 1 million because, unlike the United States, the European Union, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, the Vatican has not issued a travel ban on the Zimbabwe dictator accused of murdering millions. A diplomatic treaty between Italy and the Vatican give visitors to the Vatican special immunity from Italian and EU law.

In response to criticism, Friar Alexander Lucie-Smith wrote in an article printed by the Catholic Herald:

The Vatican is a church; on what grounds can it ban someone from coming to Mass?It is perfectly true it could place Mugabe under interdict for his many sins and misdemeanors, but if you start with Mugabe, where would you finish?Should Berlusconi also be banned? What about the much-married Sarkozy?

Misdemeanors? Murder? Torture? Corruption? State-sponsored theft? Mass starvation?

During his visit, Mugabe took the opportunity to shake hands with Pope Benedict.

Although Mugabe has recently attacked the Catholic Church in Zimbabwe, calling it a church that wants black people to bow down to small white gods, Mugabe owes his presidency to the church.

Mugabe, formerly a staunch Catholic, was protected by church officials during the time when he was fighting the Rhodesian government. The Catholic Church has also been a strong supporter of Mugabe during much of his reign. Thus it is no surprise that Mugabe would have wanted to attend the beatification of the pope who governed the church from 1978 to 2005.

Washington has also allowed Mugabe to enter the U.S. in order to attend United Nations gatherings—most notoriously in 2002 when he came to lecture on “children’s rights.”