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	Pope Arrives in Australia for World Youth Day By Tracy Withers Bloomberg July 13, 2008 http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601080&sid=aNzLzVTRbQyA&refer=asia Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Australia, where he reportedly plans to apologize for sexual abuse by priests and to address environmental issues during his visit to Sydney this week to mark World Youth Day. The aircraft carrying the pope landed at an air force base near Sydney shortly after 3 p.m. local time. The pontiff briefly waved before descending to be met by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and other dignitaries, according to Australian TV reports. More than 125,000 pilgrims from overseas will attend the five-day World Youth Day celebrations, which culminate in an open-air mass on July 20 to be attended by 500,000 people. Organizers are billing the festival as the biggest event Australia has hosted and say it will draw more people to Sydney than the 2000 Olympic Games. In April, the German-born pontiff, 81, addressed the issue of sex abuse during a visit to the U.S. and called on the church to "foster healing and reconciliation." Australian group Broken Rites says it has been contacted by more than 3,500 people in the past two decades complaining of church-related abuse and called on the pope to apologize during his visit. "We have to consider what was insufficient in our behavior and how we can prevent, heal, reconcile," Benedict told reporters aboard his aircraft, according to Agence France-Presse. "This is the essential content of what we will say as we apologize." Reviewing Allegations Last week, the Catholic Church in Australia said it is reviewing allegations of sexual assault by a priest more than 20 years ago. Cardinal George Pell has referred the case to an "independent consultative panel" chaired by a former Supreme Court judge, according to an e-mailed statement. The allegation involves a former church education coordinator who says he was sexually assaulted by a priest in 1982 when he was aged 29. While the priest was suspended and convicted in court, Pell acknowledged last week he had made mistakes in dealing with the complaint after the victim gave media interviews this week criticizing how Pell handled the case in 2003. Benedict will also use his attendance at World Youth Day to address environmental issues, AFP reported. "We must awaken consciences," he said, according to the news service. "We have to face up to this great challenge and find the ethical capacity to change the situation of the environment for the good." To contact the reporter on this story: Tracy Withers in Wellington at twithers@bloomberg.net.
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