Good Friday his advisers, decreed that Good Friday that year would be a holiday. This was Castro's response to a request made personally to him by Pope Benedict XVI during the latter's Apostolic Visitation to the island and León, Mexico that month. The move followed the pattern of small advances in Cuba's relations with the Vatican, mirroring Pope John Paul II's success in getting Fidel Castro to declare Christmas Day a holiday. Both Good Friday and Christmas are now annual holidays in Cuba. In Hong Kong, despite the transfer of sovereignty from the UK to China in 1997, Good Friday continues to
Good Friday closure controversy multinationals". Eoghan Harris described the notion of a Good Friday rugby match as "odd and wrong" in a land "impregnated with Christian symbolism". Donie Cassidy lamented the lack of respect for "the crucifixion of the Good Lord". Minister for Justice and Law Reform Dermot Ahern, when asked for his opinion, said the issue was for the courts. On 15 March 2010, 60 vintners voted to apply for the exemption at the courthouse in Limerick on 23 March 2010. This was thought to be the first time that the Good Friday alcohol ban had been challenged by publicans. Sweeney McGann Solicitors