Sarajevo, September 3, 1999 (IKA) — The new apostolic nuncio to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Msgr. Giuseppe Leanza, was formally met at the airport in Sarajevo on September 2 by the Bosnian-Herzegovian bishops, led by Archbishop Cardinal Vinko Puljić of Sarajevo; the chargé d’affaires in Bosnia-Herzegovina for the Holy See, Msgr. Mario Cassari; the new secretary in the nunciature and the Sarajevo clergy led by Deacon Dominik Bilić. Upon the nuncio’s arrival at the airport, a press conference was held at which Cardinal Puljić, as the president of the Bosnian-Herzegovian Conference of Bishops, welcomed him. Cardinal Puljić pointed out that the new nuncio is a representative of the Holy Father to whom the faithful of Bosnia-Herzegovina express filial devotion and gratitude for his pastoral visit to Sarajevo and Bosnia-Herzegovina. “Your presence now, after the war when we wish to build peace and a better future in these territories, will be a sign of hope and great encouragement for the Catholics and all people of this land,” emphasized Cardinal Puljić. In his remarks, Nuncio Leanza conveyed greetings and blessings from Pope John Paul II, and expressed his gratitude for the warm welcome. He noted that his presence in Bosnia-Herzegovina as the first permanent nuncio is evidence of the concern that the Holy Father has for this land and the people in it.
The new nuncio for Bosnia-Herzegovina, Msgr. Leanza, was appointed to this position on April 29 of this year. He is also the titular archbishop of Lilibeo. Prior to his appointment as nuncio to Bosnia-Herzegovina, he was nuncio to Zambia and Malawi. Msgr. Leanza was born in 1943 in Cesara, Italy, and ordained to the priesthood in 1966. He holds a doctorate in canon law. In 1972, he entered the diplomatic service of the Holy See, serving in the apostolic nunciatures in Paraguay, Uganda and the U.S.A. Since 1984, he has served in the Section for Relations with States of the Secretariat of State to His Holiness. In 1990, he was appointed as the apostolic nuncio to Haiti and in 1991 the apostolic nuncio to Zambia and Malawi.