"For the sake of my people I will not keep silent" (Isaiah 62:1)

"For the sake of my people I will not keep silent" (Isaiah 62:1) 

Life goes on, in Bozoum. Among the various construction sites (schools and the radio station), the preparation of formations for 250 masters, the work of the fields, time passes.

But some problems remain. Rather! 

Last week the results of the analysis of the waters of the Ouham River, here in Bozoum, were made public. The samples taken near the sites where the Chinese companies extract the gold revealed very troublesome data: in addition to the very high turbidity, there are iron and, unfortunately, also a lot of mercury, as we feared. 

Mercury is used to "concentrate" gold: once extracted everything must be heated to separate the gold from the mercury. It is a very dangerous practice, and because of contamination mercury is found throughout our water, air and vegetables, thus affecting the entire food chain. 

Unfortunately, although the results were published, there was no reaction from the authorities. No precaution and no information given to the people. 

On Sunday, after Mass, I informed those present about the problem, and I invited everyone to pay attention, not to go to the river to wash clothes, or for the artisan extraction of gold. And this is especially for women and children, who are most at risk. 

Unfortunately, Monday morning I saw, with concern, dozens of women and children going to the river to look for gold (some women even pregnant). 

What can we do?

Il rapporto sull'analisi delle acque del fiume Ouham a Bozoum
Le rapport de l'analyse des eaux de l'Ouham à Bozoum

 

Le risaie di Bozoum
les rizières de Bozoum

Bozoum, welcoming land

Bozoum, welcoming land 

With the end of the school year, the Mission life should be at a calmer pace, the key word being should.

Work is not lacking. Right now we are starting the construction of 5 classrooms, in Bozoum, thanks to funding from UNICEF. 

The construction of the Radio Koyale site is also almost finished. 

Thank you to God that in Bozoum we also received many visitors. Just today the great Mario Mazzali left, we call him our Super Mario: a tireless and highly efficient worker, for some years he has dedicated a few months to installing electrical systems, repairing faults, inventing solutions to the various technical problems that life in the Mission inevitably happen. 

Yesterday Maria Cottone arrived, who is keen to share the joy of the Mission from Catania. She arrived yesterday with Veronika, from Prague, who for a few months will follow the educational projects of the NGO SIRIRI. 

Soon Nathalie, who arrived in February, will leave. 

The results of the final exams have finally been published. At the national level, only 10% students passed. 

For our St. Augustin high school, however, the results are much better: out of 26 candidates, 19 passed, and 7 excelled on various subjects. 

One final bit of news: Fr. Norberto, who left Bozoum last week due to health reasons, arrived safely in Italy, and is now in the Negrar hospital (Verona). He's better and he's recovering.

Scuola in costruzione
école en construction

Nathalie

Radio Bozoum

Maria

Mario, superMario

Who leaves and who does not leave

Who leaves and who does not leave 

This morning a brother of mine, Fr. Norberto Pozzi, left Bozoum to return to Italy, because for four months he has gone from one case of malaria to another. 

This is Africa! Between the weather, mosquitoes and work, it sometimes happens that you to realize the limits of your body, and have to take a break.

 Fr. Norberto is from Lecco and is a hard worker, and also has one of the longest beards in Central Africa! He arrived in Bozoum in 1980 as a volunteer, then became a Carmelite, and is still here today. He is the one who takes care of most of the villages around Bozoum (around may be a somewhat of a relative term as the most distant villages are about 80/90 km away). He is the one who follows the twenty or so village schools, allowing more than 3,000 children to go to school. 

While he leaves ... the Chinese remain! We thought they had left last week, but instead they returned, and every morning, at 5, when I get up, I hear their machines working down the river (4 km away!). 

The report of the Parliamentary Investigation Commission clearly denounced the destruction of the environment, the pollution of water for hundreds of kilometers, and recommended the suspension of work. It also came to light that the sites from which Chinese companies extract gold are not even in the areas for which they obtained permits: out of 19 sites, only 2 have been authorized. 

The problem has become dubbed "Bozoum-gate", and there are allegations of corruption at very high levels. Unfortunately, Bozoum is not the only site in which foreign companies (primarily Chinese and Russians) extract gold and diamonds, impoverishing the country (and enriching only a few). 

We'll see. 

Who leaves and who does not leave ...

Radio "La voix de Koyale" di Bozoum: il nuovo direttivo
Radio "La voix de Koyale" de Bozoum: les nouveaux responsables

Lavori in corso alla sede della Radio
Travaux en cours dans le siège de la Radio

At times things work out!

At times things work out!

The end of last week, after Bouar, I left for the North, from Bocaranga. Along the way I stopped in Bohong, where the local community is building a middle school: they made the bricks, and even though it is a small start the building is growing.

On Friday I was in Koui, the rebel area, to help the primary school teachers. Out of about sixty teachers, only one is trained, while the others are all volunteers!

The volunteers only get a stipend of about 22 euros: it is a small amount, but it is very important to encourage those who rarely receive a salary!

In these upcoming weeks we are closing a similar project, supported by the German Caritas, in the Ngaoundaye area. The results have been very good: at the beginning of the school year the students were 13,345, and by the end of the year there were 16,745 (25% more).

This morning, after going to check the construction site of the Bozoum Radio headquarters, I came by 2 cars and 2 trucks with the Chinese company logo leaving Bozoum!

In recent weeks the problem of the ecological and economic disasters caused by Chinese companies that extract gold has somewhat changed.  The Government was forced to do something due to all the complaints from around the world, and the pressure of Parliament and the media.

It is not yet a definitive victory, but it is a small step. It is now time to see if the danger is averted, or if they take advantage of the rains to take a vacation, and resume in a few months. But, thanks especially to the people of Bozoum, we will monitor and try to continue reporting these crimes.

This afternoon I went to Kounde, 34 km up the road to Bouar, to see the bridge that was damaged ten days ago. Unfortunately the damage was very large, and it will take machinery to change the beams and put it back on its feet. We'll see!

Bohong

Koui

Nathalie e Sr Annita.
Nathalie et st Annita

To work!

Soletta della Radio di Bozoum
la dalle en béton pour la radio de Bozoum

To work! 

Our last school to finish was the Women’s Promotion Center “Cana” 9 on Sunday.  It is a small school that allows about forty girls and women to receive training (over 3 years) on childcare, cutting and sewing, hygiene, cooking and nutrition, and some basics in economics. 

The works of the Bozoum Radio continue. During the week we made the slab that will cover the recording studio floor, and we plan to build the roof next week. 

I accompanied Edoardo Vivalda to Bouar, a young man from Cuneo who has been in Bozoum for about a month. Unfortunately, to go to Bouar (110 km) I had to take the long road, which passes through Bossemptele and Baoro (250 km) because a bridge was damaged by a truck, and it was not possible to pass! 

 I have added 2 very interesting photos on the damage caused by the Chinese companies that extract gold, along the Ouham river. These are satellite photos, taken a year later (June 2018 - June 2019). Unfortunately, ecological and environmental disasters are very visible!

Edoardo

Centre Promotion féminine CANA de Bozoum

Metallurgia tradizionale per costruire pentole in alluminio
Artisanat traditionnel pour la fabbrication des casseroles en aluminium

Ponte di Koude (axe Bozoum-Bouar)
Le pont de Kounde (axe Bozoum-Bouar)

Foto dal satellite del fiume Ouham intorno a Bozoum: giugno 2018 e giugno 2019
Photo satellite de l'Ouham à Bozoum: juin 2018 et juin 2019

A smile refreshes life!

A smile refreshes life!

And their smiles warm the world!

So I finished last week's post. But someone complained that in Europe and elsewhere it is already too hot! Let's not forget that a smile warms the heart and refreshes life!

Speaking of heat: last Sunday, around 1.00 pm, Fr. Norberto called me.  He had left for Sambay, a village 10 km away, where he did confession and started Mass, but had to stop due to a Malaria crisis. I left immediately and met him on the street. He explained to me that, in addition to the Mass, there were also baptisms to celebrate.
I arrived in Sambay, and all the people returned to the chapel. There were at least 200 people in a chapel of less than 100 square meters, and there was an exhausting heat! After the celebration, which lasted a couple of hours, I left the church all wet!

In the upcoming days the works for the construction of the Bozoum Radio continue: we are at the slab, and in a couple of weeks we are hoping to mount the roof. Unfortunately, in the past few days we have had two tragedies, Alban and Romuald, died in a car accident. They were both teachers in our St.Augustin High School and they were also local correspondents for a national radio station. We really counted on them for the direction of the Bozoum community radio!

Speaking of education, we have just installed a digital library: a simple system that will allow teachers and pupils to access texts and novels, with a mobile phone.  This is thanks to the collaboration with the Ministry of Education, supported by the French Embassy. Merci!

Unfortunately the work of gold mining by Chinese companies continues. Despite the promises by the Government and ministers, there is no sign of improvement. The water of the river is as dense as mud, and now pollution can be seen hundreds of kilometers away!
Promised buildings (a school and two clinics) haven't started: there is only a forum for the authorities that the Prefect is having built, so that the authorities can remain in the shade during the parade on 1 December, a national holiday!

Battesimi a Sambay
Baptèmes à Sambay

La biblioteca digitale
La bibliothèque numérique

Lavori in corso per la Radio di Bozoum
les travaux pour la Radio de Bozoum

La tribuna per le autorità
la tribune pour les autorités

Il fiume Ouham
le fleuve Ouham