During his visit to Cuba last week Pope Benedict XVI met with Cuban President Raul Castro. During that visit the Holy Father made one request: that Good Friday be considered a public holiday in that country. A communique from Cuba's state-run news service Granma published on Saturday, said Raul Castro had informed Pope Benedict his request would be granted. According to the communique, Good Friday will be a public holiday this year in commemoration of the pope's visit. The Cuban government would decide in parliament if the holiday would be a permanent addition to the country's list of public holidays. During his 1998 visit to the island nation Blessed Pope John Paul II asked then-president Fidel Castro to make Christmas Day a public holiday. That request was also granted and Cubans now have a day off on December 25.