AFRICA/CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC - "We look forward to having Pope Francis in Africa," says the Bishop of Bangassou

Bangui (Agenzia Fides) - "We are trying to open a humanitarian corridor to get aid to the population and evacuate people in need of treatment" says to Fides Agency His Exc. Mgr. Juan José Aguirre Munos, Bishop of Bangassou, the city in the south-east of the Central African Republic conquered on 11 March by a dissident faction of the rebel coalition Seleka. (see Fides 12/03/2013).
"Unfortunately we do not have precise information about what is happening in the city because the phone lines are still interrupted," says the Bishop who even in the difficult moment he is experiencing he has words of appreciation for the newly elected Pope, Francis. "I am very pleased that the new Pope comes from Latin America because it is a recognition for the Church of that continent" says the Bishop who is a Comboni of Spanish origin.
"We look forward to having Pope Francis in Africa so that he can see the suffering but also the hopes of our continent," concluded Mgr. Aguirre Munos. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 14/03/2013)