Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Rome (Fides Service)- ““It doesn’t take much to make children in refugee camps in Sudan happy: a bar of soap and a few sweets” says dice Sr Vera, Secretary General of the Sisters of Charity of Saint Giovanna Antida Thouret who told us about her experience one Christmas in a refugee camp near Khartoum the capital of Sudan: “I was moved to see children waiting in a long orderly line for a little present, so great in their eyes”. The Sisters of Charity have two missions in the western Sudan region of Darfur at El Fasher and at Nyala, and 7 sisters (4 Sudanese, 1 Italian, 1 Swiss, 1 Lebanese) and two communities in Khartoum with respectively 4 sisters (2 Lebanese, 1 Irish, 1 Sudanese) and 3 sisters (2 Lebanese and 1 Sudanese.
“Out Sisters work in three fields, healthcare, education and pastoral work” says Sr Vera. “Sr Piera Santinon on a Darfur mission is a nurse specialised in tropical diseases. She used to drive thousands and thousands of miles to visit villages and refugee camps in a region the size of France. But last year bandits ambushed the sisters and took the car. In the ambush no one was hurt thanks to the presence of mind of a Lebanese sister who persuaded the bandits not to kill the driver”.
In the field of education the Sisters help to run several kindergartens and primary and middle schools. “Our job is to train teachers and arrange school meals for the children. For many of the children the meal they get at school is the only one of the day” says Sr Vera. “In Khartoum where there are one million refugees from the south, the school where we work offers morning and afternoon classes. The mornings classes are for children and they follow the national school curriculum in Arabic, in fact some of the pupils are Muslims. The afternoon lessons are for young adults, many of whom come after work. These lessons are given in English because the southern Sudanese people do not speak Arabic. However the courses includes the study of the Arabic language to help integration. I was impressed to see the young adults change their work clothes for a dress more suitable for school. This was a sign of respect and appreciation for the chance to study which they realised was for their benefit”.
“Although the situation of people in Darfur is tragic, the refugees in Khartoum also live in very precarious conditions” says Sr Vera. “Their makeshift huts which are periodically pulled down by the authorities under the pretext that new districts must be built. In this way the refugees are gradually pushed further and further from the city into the desert. But they do not desist. The children will walk kilometres to go to school. They get up before dawn and start walking to be in time for lessons”.
In Khartoum the Sisters help run a dispensary and collaborate at the local Catechists training school. “The sister in charge of the dispensary is from Ireland and she also gives a hand at the local hospital” says Sr Vera. “The sister in charge of the Catechists training school is 78 years old. Students take a three years course on various subjects including Sacred Scripture, theology and Christology.”
“In refugee camps our Sisters teach women how to sew clothes. The women who come to the lessons are of admirable faith despite many hardships” says Sr Vera. “Before the lesson they join our sisters in the recitation of the Rosary. They are an example for all of us. But this is true of all the displaced persons in Sudan. At Christmas thousands walk for hours to get to Mass. Men, women and children walk long distances in the hot sun singing and praying on their way to Mass. The sight of them is something I will never forget” Sr Vera concludes. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 14/12/2005 righe 57 parole 773)
