"Frequent attacks and crimes continue, leaving a sad sequel of suffering and death in many Colombian homes," the Pope told the ambassador, Hernando Duran Dussan. "We cannot forget that many social and political problems have their roots in the moral order."
The Pope's remarks followed the massacre of 34 people in Colombia on March 19 in the latest political violence to affect the cocaine-producing country.
On the same day Archbishop Alberto Jaramillo of Popayan, Colombia, was kidnapped by leftist guerrillas. But the archbishop was released after a few hours. THE church "energetically condemns" drugs trafficking and political violence in Colombia, Pope John Paul II told the country's new ambassador to the Vatican last week.