AFRICA/CENTRAL AFRICA - The Bishop of Bangassou: "We hope for a higher voter turnout across the country"

Tuesday, 29 December 2015 elections  

Bangui (Agenzia Fides) - "We hope that the turnout in Bangui and in other parts of the Country is high; we would not want to be the only ones to elect a new President", says His Exc. Mgr. Juan José Aguirre Muños, Bishop of Bangassou, in the south-east Central African Republic, where tomorrow the presidential elections will be held, initially planned on December 27. "In the constitutional referendum held 15 days ago (see Fides 17 and 18 December 2015), in Bangassou we recorded the highest turnout, about 97% of voters, while for example in the capital Bangui the turnout was 35%", explains Mgr. Aguirre.
"This certainly depends on the better security circumstances compared to other Central African areas" said the Bishop. "In fact we managed to create coordinating committees for peace and the management of ordinary life with the involvement of all faiths: Catholics, Protestants and Muslims. The coordination of women is of particular importance, because the latter have the ability to influence their husbands and children convincing them to lay down their arms and engage in reconciliation".
"Unfortunately - concludes the Bishop - not the whole diocese lives in peace. In the east of its territory the Ugandan rebels of the LRA (Lord's Resistance Army) have continued to sow death and destruction for at least eight years. Just three months ago the head of the local Caritas was killed, while the abduction of children and girls to turn them into soldiers and sex slaves has not stopped".
A little more than 2 million voters are called to elect the new President and the new Parliament in a consultation process which should mark the conclusion of the transition process to end the country's civil war which broke out in 2012. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 29/12/2015)


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