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As soon as it was announced that Pope Benedict XVI was going to visit Malta, the first thought that came into the prisoners’ heads was “could it be that this time, our dream will be realized? Will the Pope have enough time to visit us in the same way as other Popes did and just as Pope John XXIII did when he visited the Regina Coeli prison in Rome, more than 50 years ago? I must admit that even I was filled with hope and expectation at the idea of Pope Benedict visiting the Corrective Facility at Kordin. Yet, from the outset, it seemed unlikely that this dream would materialize, since the programme for the papal visit was spread only over 26 hours and besides, it will full to capacity. In spite of this, the prisoners did not wish to miss the opportunity to make their voices heard. They too wished to show the Pope that, like the majority of the Maltese people, they were appreciative of his visit to our country. In this respect, they thought of writing a letter and sending it to the Pope, through Fr Savio Vella SDB, who was the coordinator of the meeting which Pope Benedict had with youths at the Valletta Waterfront. The letter was penned by the prisoners who form part of the section known as YOURS, ie the section where youths are housed. The letter reads as follows:
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