The Museum of Jewish Heritage held an exhibit in January 2008, highlighting the eff orts of the Dominican
Republic to save Jewish lives. What the exhibit did not show was that it was Pope Pius XII who made a
personal request of General Trujillo to grant the 1,600 visas per year from 1939 to 1945 for Jews escaping
Europe. Th is request was delivered by the apostolic Nuncio to the Dominican Republic and Haiti, Archbishop
Silvani, and his secretary, Msgr. Giovanni Ferrofi no. Msgr. Ferrofi no revealed this secret activity in his video
interview.
Twice a year, Pope Pius XII sent a double-encrypted telegram to the Nuncio who then had to travel for one
and a half days to see General Trujillo and make this direct request in the name of Pope Pius XII. Monsignor
Ferrofi no would then be responsible to help the refugees enter the United States through Mexico, Canada,
and Cuba. Th e refugees never knew who actually secured their visas to come to the DR and then helped
them to emigrate to the United States. Monsignor Ferrofi no helped to save an estimated eleven thousand
Jews from 1939 to 1945.
Source: Pope Pius XII and World War II: The Documented Truth