Manila, Philippines, Jun 20, 2005 / 22:00 pm
Thousands of Filipinos have begun flocking to the archdiocesan cathedral in Manila to pay their final respects to Cardinal Jaime Sin, who died Tuesday at the age of 76.
According to archdiocesan officials, the cardinal died from kidney problems and diabetes. He had been hospitalized for three days and died at 6:30am at the Cardinal Santos Memorial Medical Center in Manila.
The cardinal’s health problems prevented him from traveling to Rome last April for the funeral of John Paul II and participating in the conclave the elected Benedict XVI.
The local media highlighted Cardinal Sin’s role as a religious leader during the People’s Power revolution of 1986 that lead to the downfall of Filipino dictator Ferdinand Marcos.