Pope John Paul II

=== Apartheid in South Africa ===
John Paul II was an outspoken opponent of [[apartheid in South Africa]]. In 1985, while visiting the Netherlands, he gave an impassioned speech condemning apartheid at the [[International Court of Justice]], proclaiming that "No system of apartheid or separate development will ever be acceptable as a model for the relations between peoples or races."<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20130309014419/http://articles.latimes.com/1985-05-13/news/mn-9935_1_afrikaners "Pope Attacks Apartheid in Speech at U.N. Court"] ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', 13 May 1985</ref> In September 1988, John Paul II made a pilgrimage to ten Southern African countries, including those bordering South Africa, while demonstratively avoiding South Africa. During his visit to [[Zimbabwe]], John Paul II called for economic sanctions against South Africa's government.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1995/09/17/world/pope-s-south-africa-visit-honors-2-vows.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm Pope's "South Africa Visit Honors 2 Vows"] ''[[The New York Times]]'', 13 May 1995</ref> After John Paul II's death, both [[Nelson Mandela]] and [[Archbishop Desmond Tutu]] praised the pope for defending human rights and condemning economic injustice.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20060718134841/http://www.southafrica.info/mandela/pope-050405.htm#.UHIDqMr4IsA Mandela 'deeply inspired' by Pope] [South Africa Info], 5 April 2005</ref>