Pope Leo XIV called Wednesday for "expanding spaces of freedom" in Equatorial Guinea, on the second day of his visit to the tightly controlled Central African nation. He delivered a rare condemnation of detainee living conditions before visiting a prison himself.

On this tenth day of his African tour, the American pontiff maintained a relentless schedule, beginning in Mongomo—the presidential clan's stronghold near the Gabon border—with a Mass before some 100,000 faithful.

In the presence of 83-year-old President Teodoro Obiang Nguema, who has ruled this Spanish-speaking country with an iron fist since 1979, the Pope urged that "spaces of freedom must grow, and human dignity must always be preserved."

Despite their diplomatic tone, these statements represent a highly unusual public rebuke in this heavily controlled country, which is frequently criticized for suppressing freedom of expression.

In the afternoon, the Pope will meet with detainees at Bata prison, located in the economic capital and largest city on the shores of the Gulf of Guinea.

A 2023 U.S. State Department report documented cases of torture, extreme overcrowding, and deplorable sanitary conditions in Equatoguinean prisons—a situation that also alarms NGOs, including Amnesty International.

The pontiff was welcomed at Mongomo Basilica in an electrifying atmosphere with elaborate staging: fireworks and a balloon release celebrated his arrival, followed by a crowd bath in the popemobile amid cheers from the faithful.

Juliette Atchang, a 40-year-old Cameroonian living in Djibloho province, believes this visit "can change things." "We immigrants don't have the chance to get meaningful work," she told AFP.

In this secular country of two million people—80% Catholic, and previously visited by John Paul II in 1982—the head of the Catholic Church must walk a delicate diplomatic tightrope: supporting the faithful without being seen as endorsing the Equatoguinean regime.

Addressing sensitive issues of political pluralism and public freedoms, Leo XIV on Tuesday called on authorities to place themselves "at the service of law and justice" and denounced "the colonization of oil and mineral deposits, in contempt of international law and the self-determination of peoples."

Equatorial Guinea has grown considerably wealthier since the discovery of major oil deposits in the early 1990s. Hydrocarbon production accounted for 46.1% of GDP in 2024, according to the African Development Bank.

Since the start of his marathon 11-day tour across four African nations, the American Pope has juggled Masses, speeches, flights by plane and helicopter, meetings, ceremonies, and crowd baths, pushing his delegation and journalists at a frenetic pace under stifling tropical heat.

At 70, Robert Francis Prevost—relatively young for a pontiff—displays an energy that contrasts sharply with the declining health of his Argentine predecessor Francis, who died one year ago at 88.

After an 18,000-kilometer journey that began in Algeria and continued through Cameroon and Angola, the Pope will conclude his tour Thursday with an open-air Mass at Malabo Stadium before returning to Rome.

AFP