Some 900 Indians will travel to WYD-Lisbon (but many are still waiting for their visa)

In previous WYDs, some Indian participants chose not to return home; as a result, Indian authorities are tightening controls. For Fr Chetan Machado, executive secretary of the Catholic Youth Movement (CYM) of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI), “80 per cent [of applicants] should be able to travel for the WYD.”

Mumbai (AsiaNews) – Some 900 Indians have registered for World Youth Day (WYD) in Lisbon (Portugal) where they will be able to meet with Pope Francis from 2 to 6 August.

To do so, participants must fill out a registration form and receive a letter of recommendation from their local bishop (with the diocesan letterhead), signed and with its official seal. Once these documents are obtained, they can apply for a visa.

“Lots of documents are required to register and get a visa,” said Fr Chetan Machado, executive secretary of the Catholic Youth Movement (CYM) of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI).[*]

This has resulted in “lots of issues”, so much so that “We are not even sure whether everyone who registered will get a visa for Lisbon. But 80 per cent should be able to travel for the WYD,” he added.

Red tape and delays could jeopardise the educational experience for hundreds of Indians. Indian authorities are also being very thorough since some young people who attended previous editions voluntarily did not come home.

Rejected applicants are quite discouraged as flights for Europe are scheduled for the first half of next week. Emotions over this trip are running high.

“I was looking forward to this moment and now it is happening. I can't wait to experience the WYD-Lisbon, see Pope Francis and many youths from all over the world,” said Abhishek Bhattacharjee, national coordinator of Young Catholic Students-Young Students' Movement (YCS-YSM).

“It is a life experience for youth all over the world, especially for Asian youth, to meet millions of young people under one umbrella, that of the Holy Mother Church,” said Fr Anil D’Sa, Asian chaplain at the International Young Catholic Student (IYCS).

Portuguese authorities are trying to facilitate visa procedures, especially at the Portuguese consulate in Goa, while other applicants have to go through the Embassy in Delhi.

"For me, this is a second World Youth Day,” explained Fr. Chetan Machado. “I saw young people really involved. I can't wait to live another experience.”

Along with youth from around the world, young Indians also worked on this year's theme “Mary arose and went with haste,” which comes from the Gospel of Luke, noted Bishop Ignatius D'Souza, chairman of the CCBI Youth Commission.

“This is a call to the youth to be active and mission oriented to follow Mary’s example to rise up, get involved and become more active in their commitment to God and to the Church,” he added.

“The church in India has a vibrant faith, and the vitality of Jesus must be taken to others, witnessed in service to the elderly, the marginalised, the vulnerable, those with special needs and even our own peers.”

[*]The national episcopal conference of the bishops of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in India.

• india
• lisbon
• portugal
• world youth days
• wyd
• service
• mary
• gospel of luke
• red tape
• delays
• visa