Pope Francis to champion poor in tour of South America

Pope Francis has left Rome for his first trip to Spanish-speaking South America, a ‘homecoming’ to a continent where he will champion the rights of the poor and of the planet.

His trip to Ecuador, Bolivia and Paraguay three of South America’s poorest and smallest countries, is Francis’s first abroad since his landmark encyclical ‘Laudato Si’ issued an urgent call for defence of the environment.

Francis arrived in the Ecuadorian capital Quito after a 13-hour flight from Rome.

Sign welcoming @Pontifex in Quito's magnificent Plaza Grande, where atmosphere is full of expectation. pic.twitter.com/hYYDrTeTD2

— Joshua McElwee (@joshjmcelwee) July 5, 2015

Francis visited Brazil for a youth festival in 2013 but that was to substitute for his predecessor Benedict after his sudden resignation.

Because he chose countries himself, Vatican aides say this is the real “homecoming” to his native continent. He will not visit his native Argentina until next year.

Policía y ciudadanía se prepara ya en la av 6 de diciembre para ver al Papa @Pontifex pic.twitter.com/9wBqKztD5s

— Ingrid Coba Ortega (@IngridCobaO) July 5, 2015

His first stop, Ecuador, has been hit by anti-government demonstrators for weeks who have taken to the streets to protest against tax rises and alleged autocracy in government.

Protest leaders have called a moratorium during the pope’s visit out of respect for him.

Celebrated by supporters as a champion of the poor but cast by critics as an old-style Latin America ‘caudillo’, President Rafael Correa was elected in 2006 vowing to spread the country’s wealth more fairly and protect the country’s natural riches.