AMERICA/HAITI - The Bishops on kidnappings: "The fight against this phenomenon must continue"

Wednesday, 5 May 2021 human rights violence armed groups criminality

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Port au Prince (Agenzia Fides) - "The fight against the phenomenon of kidnappings and against evil must continue", said the Episcopal Conference of Haiti in a text sent to Agenzia Fides and published last night where they invite the community to join forces to confront this social evil. In thanking those who followed the story of the kidnapping of religious (See Fides, 4/5/2021), the bishops write: "We are grateful for the great solidarity expressed in the calls for mobilization launched by the CEH and the CHR, both by Catholic Christians and by other religious sectors of the country and a large part of civil society. Many Haitians in the diaspora have expressed their compassion for these victims of kidnapping and have cried for our country which seems to be plunging into chaos. All have shown great communion and closeness to us in the struggle to stem this evil, all evil, which disturbs social peace and personal and inner serenity. This expression of great solidarity is, for many of us, a non-negotiable value that makes us all sensitive to the pain of the other". However, the text also denounces the indifference shown by some groups with social and political responsibility: "We observe with pain and great suffering the impotence of some, the indifference of others and the complicit silence of some officials in the management of kidnappings in general, in the face of the proliferation of criminal gangs and the increase in the rate of kidnappings that affect Haitian citizens and foreigners in almost all vital sectors of the country. As national security deteriorates, the population is forced to fend for itself in the face of this phenomenon of kidnapping. We strongly denounce this drift imposed on society. How long will the light of truth shine on all these kidnapping cases and when will they stop?". The Bishops invite the Catholic faithful to participate in a mass tomorrow, May 6, to be celebrated in all parishes as a "lively gesture of vigilance, prudence and commitment to keep the flame of prayer burning for the liberation of our country". (CE) (Agenzia Fides, 5/5/2021)