Sawt Falasteen - Prayers, disbelief in East Timor after Pope Francis death

In capital Dili, Catholic worshippers took a moment to remember the pope, who died aged 88 months after he received a rockstar welcome in the city as part of a marathon four-nation tour.

"When I hear and see (the news) on social media, I was... very, very sad because of the loss of a Pope that was known in the world, particularly in East Timor," said 40-year-old Maria at a Catholic church, declining to give her last name.

"He was a simple man, a very humble man, a figure that gets close with the common people. We really miss Pope Francis."

East Timor President Jose Ramos-Horta, who hosted Pope Francis, mourned his death but hailed his "very brave" fight for peace and the world's poorest people.

Cardinal Virgilio do Carmo da Silva, the archbishop of Dili, said the Vatican flag would be flown at half mast at his residence, while a mass would be held across the country's churches in the coming days.

The Argentine pontiff visited East Timor -- one of the world's poorest countries -- in September on a trip that included Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Singapore in between bouts of ill health.

He held a mass on the outskirts of Dili that authorities said attracted almost half of the country's 1.3 million people.

"I am very shocked and sad to hear this news. I enjoyed seeing so many enthusiastic people who wanted to see the Pope," said student Glenn Bawakana Soares, 22.

On that visit the first Latin American pontiff made a pointed call to East Timor's leaders to do more on all forms of abuse, after several high-profile child abuse scandals involving members of the nation's clergy.

"We are all called to do everything possible to prevent every kind of abuse and guarantee a healthy and peaceful childhood for all young people," he said in a speech in Dili.

- 'Don't accept' -

Recent abuse cases in East Timor include Nobel-winning Bishop Carlos Ximenes Belo, who the Vatican secretly punished over allegations he sexually abused young children for decades.

In another case, defrocked American priest Richard Daschbach was found guilty in 2021 of abusing orphaned, disadvantaged girls and sentenced to 12 years in prison.

Pope Francis did not mention a specific case or acknowledge any Vatican responsibility.

Meanwhile some Timorese were refusing to accept that the energetic reformer had died, especially on Easter Monday.

"There are those who believe it and also think this is a lie. They think this is fake news," student Soares said.

"They don't accept reality."

Others saw his legacy as one paving a path for future pontiffs to speak out for the most underprivileged in society.

"A revolutionary pope, he is the hope of marginalised people but his health did not let him live long enough to defend his work," Ato Lekinawa Costa, chief editor of Timorese news site Neon Metin, told AFP.

"The wave of goodbye in his visit last year means forever now, but hopefully next Pope will carry on Pope Francis good work and commitment."

N.Awad--SF-PST