On 8 October 2011, he was named special papal envoy to the celebration of the centenary of the cathedral of Yangon, Burma, scheduled for 8 December 2011. Martino met with Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, a Buddhist, before the Mass. Though too old to participate in the 2013 conclave that elected Pope Francis, Martino was one of the six cardinals who made the public act of obedience on behalf of the College of Cardinals to the new pope at his papal inauguration. On 12 June 2014, Martino became the longest serving cardinal deacon following the elevation of Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran to the rank of Cardinal-Priest. Martino had declined to exercise his option of taking the title of cardinal priest after ten years as a cardinal deacon. In letters dated 21 July 2017, the Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda issued notice that Martino's 2014 appointment to the Order of the Nation had been annulled. Notes References External links Permanent Observers of the Holy See to the United Nations 21st-century Italian cardinals Almo Collegio Capranica alumni 1932 births Living people People from Salerno Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy alumni 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic titular archbishops Apostolic Nuncios to Singapore Apostolic Nuncios to Thailand Apostolic Nuncios to Malaysia Apostolic Nuncios to Laos Recipients of the Order of the Nation (Antigua and Barbuda) Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerants Cardinals created by Pope John Paul II