Pope Francis focuses on Chile’s migrants

IQUIQUE, Chile — Pope Francis will close his visit to Chile on Thursday (Santiago time) with an open-air Mass on the beach, before leaving for Peru on the last leg of his South American trip.

The pope's homily at the Mass for tens of thousands of pilgrims expected at Lobitos Beach, near the northern city of Iquique, will focus on immigration.

Some 1,800 kilometers (1,120 miles) north of the capital Santiago, the city has been a huge draw for illegal immigrants from Chile's poorer neighbors, helping to drive an economic boom.

More than half a million registered foreign nationals currently live in Chile, 3 percent of the country's 17.5 million population, but there are growing concerns about increasing illegal immigration from poor countries such as Haiti and Venezuela.

Following Thursday's Mass, the 81-year-old pontiff will meet with victims of the brutal 1973-1990 dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, before flying directly to Peru's capital Lima in the evening.

Demonstrations against Church sex abuse scandals and attacks on churches marked the opening days of his visit to Chile.

The pope celebrated Mass in a restive region of southern Chile on Wednesday, denouncing the use of violence in the struggle for indigenous rights, only hours after assailants firebombed churches and other targets.

The Argentine-born pontiff was shining the spotlight on the simmering conflict between the state and the Mapuche people, who centuries ago controlled vast areas of Chile but have since been marginalized.