Pope Francis back in South America

Pope Francis returned on Saturday to Spanish-speaking South America for the first time, beginning a nine-day tour in Ecuador, Bolivia and Paraguay. He will not stop by his native Argentina.

After his second encyclical “Laudato Si'”, focusing on environmental degradation, global warming, irresponsible development and poverty, the pope will visit three of the poorest and most marginal countries of his native continent, that  claim 40 percent of the world’s Catholics. Therefore, Francis will address expecially to indigenous population, particularly afflicted of poverty and inequality.

His arrival at the international airoport in Quito has been welcomed by ten of thousands of excited people. Crowds had begun gathering on Sunday morning along the route from the airport to the papal nuncio’s residence, where Francis will be staying and more than a million Roman Catholics are expected at mass in Quito on Tuesday.

The papal visit coincides with a time of political tension in Ecuador. President Rafael Correa, infact, an avowed admirer of Pope Francis, has faced weeks of protests demanding his resignation over his policies, including an initiative to increase inheritance taxes. He will meet meet with the pope late Monday, then Pope Francis will also meet with Bolivian leader Evo Morales and Paraguay’s President Horacio Cartes.

In September, Francis will travel to the US and at the end of the year he plans to visit the Central African Republic and Uganda. He has said he hopes to visit his native Argentina, Chile and Uruguay in 2016. He has also promised to visit Peru and Mexico at some point in the future and said he would return to Brazil in 2017.