Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Bukavu (Agenzia Fides) – The priest and seminarian who were kidnapped the night of October 2-3 by an armed band of men who attacked a parish in Ciherano (in Walungo, southern Bukavu, in South Kivu, DRC) have been freed.) According to local sources of Agenzia Fides, the parish priest was also kidnapped and was almost immediately freed by the kidnappers themselves.
A spokesman from the Congolese Army said the priest and seminarian were freed the night of October 3-4. According to the military spokesman, the kidnappers were members of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), an armed group that has been attacking Kivu since the 1990s. The spokesman also confirmed that the two men of the Church were freed in exchange for a ransom of 5,000 dollars.
“I cannot confirm the payment of the ransom,” Agenzia Fides was told by a source from the local Church, who for security reasons wishes to remain anonymous. “If this were so, it would be a serious occurrence, as it would set a dangerous precedent.” Fides sources, however, do not exclude the possibility that other motives are hidden behind the criminal act: “Through this kidnapping, I fear that they have wished to launch a threat at the Church, which has a widespread influence in the area and is an authoritative witness to what is taking place in North and South Kivu. In the two Congolese provinces, only in the larger cities is there relative security, while in the rural areas and the bush, the armed groups are the ones who dictate the law.”
“This insecurity, which has lasted at least 15 years, is aimed at emptying the land of its inhabitants, in order to get their hands on the natural wealth it contains. It is a plan that we see being carried out with our own eyes. The armed groups, who they say are fighting each other, really spend most of their time attacking civilians and burning villages. They are probably pawns in a greater scheme extended in time. The Bishops and the Church continue to denounce these crimes and thus, create frustration,” Fides sources concluded.
A recent report published by the organization Global Witness (see Fides 21/7/2009) offers a detailed description of how the various military formations in the area finance themselves through the natural resources of the region. “In many parts of the provinces of North and South Kivu, armed groups and the Congolese national army control the trade in cassiterite (tin ore), gold, columbite-tantalite (coltan), wolframite (a source of tungsten) and other minerals.” (LM) (Agenzia Fides 5/10/2009)
