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Thousands in Manila Say Final Good-byes to Cardinal Sin
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(http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=E08B80:3919ACA

Cardinal Jaime Sin, a strong critic of corruption in government, was
credited with a central role in ousting dictator Ferdinand Marcos in
1986 and president Joseph Estrada in 2001 Cardinal Jaime Sin received
a hero's burial at the Manila Cathedral Tuesday. Philippine political
leaders, foreign and local clergy, diplomats and hundreds of Roman
Catholic followers attended the funeral mass. Thousands more Filipinos
endured the heat outside the church for a last glimpse of the once
influential leader.







The flag-draped coffin of Filipino Catholic Cardinal Jaime Sin passes
by his portrait as it is paraded around Plaza Roma fronting the Manila
Cathedral for Sin's funeral Tuesday June 28, 2005A horse-drawn
carriage carried the cardinal's wooden casket, adorned with white
flowers and draped with the Philippine flag, around the outside of the
cathedral. Soldiers then fired a 21-gun salute before the casket was
buried in a crypt inside the cathedral.

Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales paid tribute to a man best known
for his pivotal role in toppling two presidents. "Remembering our
beloved Cardinal Sin, we know we have to continue pursuing his dream
for a people who still hunger to be free from every form of tyranny,"
he said.

Cardinal Sin, a strong critic of corruption in government, was
credited with a central role in ousting dictator Ferdinand Marcos in
1986 and president Joseph Estrada in 2001. Both presidents were
accused of plundering government coffers.

The two women whom Cardinal Sin helped install in the presidency,
former president Corazon Aquino, who replaced Mr. Marcos, and Mr.
Estrada's successor, incumbent president Gloria Arroyo, were among
those who honored the cardinal Tuesday. Ms. Arroyo currently faces
allegations of election fraud and corruption herself.

Cardinal Sin served as leader of the Catholic Church for nearly 30
years until his retirement in 2003. He died on June 22 at the age of
76.


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