San Salvador, May 23 (teleSUR-RHC)-- Some 300,000 pilgrims coming from different parts of the world attended Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero’s beatification ceremony in San Salvador on Saturday, led by a special envoy from the Vatican.

The Catholic Church and the Salvadoran government both worked to prepare for the ceremony, with nearly 2,000 police officers and 45,000 volunteer rescue workers in place to provide security.

Archbishop Rafael Urrutia explained that for four months, the Salvadoran Church had been preparing the historic event, which was covered by about 400 journalists. He added that over 1,200 priests attended the ceremony, in addition to nearly 200 bishops from Central America and other parts of the world. Giant screens were set up in the streets so the ceremony could be easily visible.

An alternative procession also began Saturday afternoon, organized by Romerist social organizations, including the Ecclesiastic Grassroots Communities, the International Service of Solidarity with Latin America “Oscar Romero,” among others. They have been mobilizing since Romero’s assassination in 1980 for his beatification, and still demand authorities launch a more in-depth judicial process to bring to justice the mastermind and perpetrators of the crime.