Azalina, Ewon to represent Malaysian government at Pope Francis' State Funeral

Azalina, Ewon represent government at Pope Francis' State Funeral

PHOTO: NSTP

KUALA LUMPUR: Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform), Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said and Minister of Entrepreneur and Cooperative Development, Datuk Ewon Benedick, will represent the government at the State Funeral of the late Pope Francis in Vatican City, tomorrow.

Through a statement , the Foreign Ministry confirmed the matter.

The State Funeral Ceremony will include a religious ceremony based on Roman Catholic customs (Funeral Mass) at St. Peter's Square, Vatican City, which will be led by Giovanni Battista Re, Head of the College of Cardinals.

After that, a procession will be held to accompany Pope Francis' body to the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, where he will be buried in a private ceremony.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim expressed his condolences on the passing of Pope Francis on April 21.

In his message, the Prime Minister commemorated the great contributions to interfaith dialogue efforts, environmental management and the protection of the rights of marginalized groups.