Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) – “Thousands of deaths, peoples condemned to inhumane conditions, children who are kidnapped an forced in to armed groups, etc....It is truly a human drama that we see before our eyes and that cannot leave anyone indifferent.” This has been the voice of the Bishops of the Democratic Republic of Congo, echoing that of the Holy Father (see Fides 13/10/2008) in calling for an end to the drama involving the people of North Kivu.
In a message entitled, “Innocent blood in the Democratic Republic of Congo,” the Congolese Bishops’ Conference (CENCO) “harshly condemns the ignoble manner of considering war as a means for resolving conflicts or satisfying ambitions.” They “denounce all the crimes committed against the peaceful inhabitants and in a more absolute manner, the recruitment of children who are forced to fight.” And they also “firmly condemn the taking of civilian hostages and their use as human shields.”
CENCO “is afraid that these wars, recurrent in the east and northeast, are not only a cover-up to hide the exploitation of natural resources, because fighting takes place in areas where resources are exploited and it seems there is a will to do so in an illegal manner. There is a fear that these wars may simply be part of a plan of balkanization of the country, through the creation of “dwarf states.” They said: “territorial integrity, the inviolability of borders and national unity of DR-Congo are not negotiable.”
Addressing the new Prime Minister, the Bishops urge him and the new government to give priority to the matters concerning the eastern part of the country and they make a call to the international community, asking that their be a greater effort to bring peace to those regions: “all will benefit from a Congo at peace rather than a Congo at war.”
After recalling the fact that true peace is not merely the absence of war, but “is founded on a correct conception of the human being and requires the building of social order based on justice and charity,” the Bishops concluded by inviting all to “show their solidarity and compassion for the suffering of our brothers and sisters who are victims of these wars.”
In addition to the war in the North, instigated by Nkunda’s forces, in the eastern province on the border with Sudan, the Ugandan guerrillas of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) are attacking the local civilians. The Diocese of Dongu-Doruma has issued a statement saying that over 121,000 people have been forced to abandon their homes due to LRA attacks; of these, 21,700 are children and 98,800 are elderly people. They have called upon the other dioceses in asking for help for these people. (LM) (Agenzia Fides 14/10/2008)
