Finally some good news!

I’m back after a couple of weeks…so the friends that translate my posts took a small break (thanks to Chiara for English, Ludmila, Terezie and Martin for Czech, to p.Juan for Spanish, Regina for German!).

so let’s move on one step at the time….Sunday afternoon i set off to Bangui, the Capital: 400km faraway, ten of rebels barriers. It’s always a bet, as they have no regulation, often being Chadians or Sudanese they barely speak Sango or French.

When asked “Where are you going?” I answer that is none of their business. Usually they get annoyed and reply it’s their job. And I reply back that once they know where I go can they actually guarantee my safety? So most times they have enough and they let me go.

Getting back to Bangui after 4 months, with everything that happened is quite striking: there are few cars around (most have been stolen and taken off to Chad, others are still hidden away) and barely anyone in the streets. Several military from FOMAC (an African multinational force)others from France and many rebels still around….

Tension and state of uncertainty are still there. A friend of mine, whom in 2008 I went to argue against rebels with, became counselor to president. He’s still doesn’t feel safe to sleep at home, as rebels went several times there looking for him….

On Monday morning in Bangui I went to a meeting with the Archbishop and the religious leaders. There were about 50 of us, Muslims, protestants, Catholics. All together to work on peace and mediation. It was mostly about training, but foremost to gather with other religions to talk, exchange information and share thoughts on this war time. I was sitting between a priest from Bangassou and an imam from Bangui.

This meeting came from the worry that having many Muslims here now, there could be a violent reaction towards all of them indiscriminately.

There are actual concerns on this Islamic advance (that brought looting and attacks on Christians and churches), also there is a risk that people, tired of plundering and some Muslim getting rich,  will be violent against them.( https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B8xHb5_hvSzRMUxhSmFMeXlhOGM/edit?usp=sharing)

I spent Wednesday doing chores, several shops have been pillaged and many ONGs closed down and fired personnel….

On Thursday i went to the airport to pick up Ludmila, Květa and Martin. Ludmila works for Siriri, an association in Prague that helps us with the orphans, the disabled and education, Květa and Martin are Czech TV operators and they are here for a documentary project on the Czech humanitarian help here in CAR.

Our trip was fairly smooth. We stopped in a Bossembele, 160km far from the capital. Here there was a nuns community, with schools and disabled Centre. Sadly with the sisters leaving on the 22^nd of March, rebels ransacked everything. Really striking!

Here in Bozoum I got a good news: the primary school representative came with the report  for the second week since the reopening. There were only 140 kids in the beginning, now we’re counting 1699! Finally some good news!

LIFE GOES ON

This week few things happened…Wednesday afternoon I went off to Bouar, 250km far from here. Rebels put a bar, they ask me in Sango where do I go. Around, I say. He perhaps doesn’t understand and replies ok you can go…

In Bossemptele, 85 km, two more bars. At the first one they lazily move it. At the second they ask me where do I go. Around, I say. They get angry and ask me the certificate mission document. So I say where’s yours? – they actually have no right to be there to stop people (only their weapons make it so). I also explain I’m doing my job and he replies almost in French “Je suis travaillé ici”….(which means I was worked here)

Then he lifted the bar and let me pass----- everything else went all right. In Bouar I met people, brothers from the St.Elie and Yolè community. On Thursday morning we had a meeting with the parish members of Justice and Peace. We exchanged information and opinions on the present situation. Soon we’ll begin a series of radio programs to help people think things over, on democracy, society…..

Friday 31st, festival of Mary and Elizabeth we gathered in the afternoon on mount Talo, a hill overlooking Bozoum. We celebrated the mass, prayed for this country and asked Mary to bless us with her mercy

Saturday the Christians of Justice and Peace organized a meeting with members of Education Agency. Out of 70, 66 teachers just ended a 8 months training. Problem is that they haven’t been paid yet and many are still based in the capital. We beseeched them to think of this country’s future, to the families’ situation and eventually they accepted to reopen the schools again. Therefore, on Monday the 3rd of June, after 2 months break, schools will be open once again…..

LATEST UPDATE

Close Encounters…

On Sunday I was visiting a sick woman in the neighborhood and they told me the rebels just arrested a guy from our parish, Christian Mandaba. He’s one of the Counseling Center managers in our Caritas home opened every Sunday for poor, orphans and widows…..this morning a lady came and brought back some stuff stolen by her husband off to a local merchant, to be given back.

Christian accepted the task and set off to the merchant’s house. Unfortunately the latter told the rebels to arrest Christian, in order to gain information about the real culprit….

So, after giving the sick woman her holy communion I went over there… Christian is outside, asking how come they arrested him. They say the Commander decided so. They took him and brought him inside. I went after them, they were shouting a bit…so was I. I said until they release him I won’t go away. I refused the chair they gave me, I sat on the concrete floor. For them this is a great offense! We discussed a while. I eventually sat on their chair (which was unstable and rather unsteady)

We discussed, and argued, and discussed ...Commander arrived, we greeted each other and We discussed, and argued, and discussed some more…every now and then some of the toughest rebel chimed in…and eventually we came to a conclusion.

They set him free.

So I finally walked back home.

This time all went well……

AFTER TWO MONTHS

Sunday morning a guy I know well told me what happened to him the day before. He’s a mobile phone technician. After he went to Mbaiki (100km far from Bangui) for work, he was on his way from the capital with few others, when they came across few cars. Their driver, dazzled by their lights he flashed once. Unfortunately it was two cars full of Seleka rebels. They stopped the, and a colonel came threatening the driver with a pistol. They beaten him and spoke in Arab intimidated him. Eventually another rebel that was with them stepped in and made them stop.

The driver got  wounded in the head, beaten by punches, and pistol’s butt. After they medicated him they went off to Bangui….

The guy wrote me “Personally I wasn’t harmed but I was very impressed to watch someone got beaten and I couldn’t do anything”

This is exactly how I feel regarding what’s happening here in CAR. We had coup d’etats, but this time is far worse! After 2 months they keep on plundering, shooting, killing and violence.

Rebels presence in this country caused every bad thing possible:

·         The civil servants getaway

·         The soldiers and law enforcement agency escape

·         Schools and public offices closures

·         Emerging criminals and thugs stealing, plundering and literally emptying out houses.

·         Ethnical and religious tension

It’s hard to get around, both because rebels stole hundreds of cars (one is ours and one of Bouar’s community) and also because one fears to meet bad people,

Thefts and loots are everyday routine. In Bangui, a widow, mother of 4, saw the rebels coming. She already lost all in the 2003 plunders. They took away few furniture and the next day while she was away, they came back, stole everything, and occupied her place. The widow had to leave.

Sadly these stories have become everyday routine. Same thing happened to hospitals, schools, public offices, petrol stations, private citizen’s houses, churches and convents, ONG structures….schools are closed, teachers are gone, few left are scared they will become a target for lloting or worse.

Furthermore the state funds are empty. There was very little before the rebels arrived, but with the coup d’état the rebels took everything. Even the petrol stations, they sold petrol and gas. That was one of the most important incomes for the state. This means the civil servants won’t get paid.

 In addition to all this there are other worrying facts:

 ·         Chad and Sudan interference: majority if Rebels are foreigners, they don’t speak Sango (National language), they speak only Arab.

·         The control over subsoil, especially gas fields. The first ministry is the petrol one.

·         Complete absence of control over the rebels, last week one of them told me1  We are rebels, 2 we are at war and 3 this is Chad province

·         Lack of development programs. The CAR, after 50 years from independence, has never built a school with state money

·         Islam element – half ministries in the new government are Muslim. Most plunders and lootings happen to non-Muslim people, most particularly to the Catholics. This is all very worrying, considering we were going on quite well.

·         The total interruption of any economical and commercial activities, and the perspective of investor’s getaway that got looted and threatened.

 There’s a Psalm that often comes back to me, especially in these days of fear and tension “When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?" (Psalm 11.3) during these months I often say to the people, especially the young ones “one needs to think!” if the country is in these conditions it’s also because problems were left unattended.

Facing 51.4% illiterates, overcrowded classrooms (often more than 100 students), with non-existing Justice, a self-centered political class, a welfare only interested in profit …. “what can the righteous do?"

It’s obvious that there’s an enormous need of training and education to be done, in all levels and point of views. This is why we do not leave the country, and we keep our schools open! This is why we shout! CAR is hardly known, almost no worldwide extent.

The most important news these past 2 weeks about CAR ….was the killing of 26 elephants. Which is important too, of course.

But we had more than 300 dead since the 24^th of march, and rapes and wounded and looting…..CAR really risks of being abandoned to itself and to become hell on earth.

If we write, shout and make someone stop and listen….perhaps they can help do something!

Church, especially through the brave Archbishop of  Bangui is one of the few rare voice that keeps on trying shake people conscience….we want to keep on talking and to work hard so that in future these things won’t happen!