Havana, Cuba - Cuban Cardinal Jaime Ortega unveiled a statue of the late Pope John Paul II in the eastern city of Holguin, Roman Catholic Church officials said Wednesday.
The bronze piece, installed in the San Isidro cathedral, is the first to be dedicated to John Paul in Cuba, the Rev. Jose Felix, secretary of the island's Episcopal Conference, told The Associated Press.
He said all of Cuba's bishops were present at the revealing ceremony, which took place over the weekend in Holguin, 435 miles east of Havana.
The life-size statue, designed by Cuban artists Henry Wilson and Hector Carrillo, shows the late pope standing, and dressed in his papal uniform with his right arm up in the air.
The artists "were able to capture the meditative expression of the Sovereign Pontiff," Holguin's Radio Angulo said on its Web site.
John Paul made a historic visit to communist Cuba in 1998. He called for more religious and political opening on the island, but also criticized a U.S. trade embargo against Cuba.
Cuba never broke ties with the Vatican, even when the island was officially atheist after the 1959 revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power. The government removed references to atheism in the constitution in 1991 and allowed religious believers to join the Communist Party.