Abidjan (Fides Service) - "After seven months of civil war the political situation in Ivory Coast has not improved at all, despite many attempts to promote reconciliation", says a missionary of the Piccola Opera of Divine Providence of Don Orione, in Ivory Coast the African country which since last September has been torn by civil war. The missionary works in Korhogo, in the northern part of the country under control of rebels who oppose President Laurent Gbagbo. In Korhogo on 18 April, three Salesian missionaries, from Spain, were maltreated and held hostage by rebels for some hours. The missionaries were accused of hiding an escaped prisoner. Local sources from the Salesian Congregation say that the rebels "beat up our confreres to try to make them speak and say where the fugitive was hiding. When they remained silent (because they did not know the whereabouts of the man) the rebels killed the mission dog and took the fathers away to one of their army camps. Here they were beaten again and then shut up in containers with other prisoners in the boiling heat of the day. The parish people soon took action, informing priests in neighbouring parishes, rebel leaders, the Nunciature and the Spanish Embassy. They staged a large procession led by the Crucifix towards the military camp. The rebels tore the cross from the hands of the boy carrying it, beat him and arrested him, dispersing the crowds. A military leader apologised to the three priests for what happened, explaining that they have difficulty in keeping discipline among the men".
Also from west Ivory Coast dramatic stories continue to arrive. Fides Service spoke with Fr Gerardo SMA, who works in Tabou, in southeast Ivory Coast near the border with Liberia. "Tabou is controlled by the government army and at the moment the situation is calm. The rebels have reached a point at 40 km from here and one of our missions which is further north was sacked." The missionary tells Fides Service: "We have given assistance to several thousands of displaced persons. The first to come were from surrounding villages, later were taken in by relatives. Then it was the turn of foreign workers, most originally from Mali and Burkina Faso, who had lost everything. Those from Mali were gradually repatriated, but there are still some 1,700 from Burkina Faso at our mission. Most are Muslims; some are Christians of other confessions. With the help of the local Catholics we have been able to give the refugees a daily meal of rice or fish. Now that the rains have started we have to let them sleep in the church".
On the political level, the president and rebels are still battling for control of the ministries of the Interior and Defence in the new government of national unity which should restore peace, but peace still seems a long way off. LM (Fides Service 24/4/2003 EM lines 40 Words: 529)