Africa

• 3 November 2008
  AFRICA/DR CONGO - Kivu: ceasefire maintained, however the humanitarian crisis continues; local press reports on the interests behind those in favor of a new war Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) – Taking advantage of the ceasefire, a UN humanitarian aid convoy reached Rutshuru, North Kivu (eastern Democratic Republic of Congo), an area currently in the hands of Laurent Nkunda and his r ...
• 3 November 2008
  AFRICA/ZAMBIA - New President Rupiah Banda takes office, under the same flag as his predecessor, who died in August Lusaka (Agenzia Fides) – On November 2, in a ceremony that took place just hours following the announcement of the election results from October 30, the new President of Zambia, Rupiah Banda, took office. The new ...
• 31 October 2008
  AFRICA/DR CONGO - Thousands of civilians are fleeing: “The drama of North Kivu affects the international community,” says the President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Cardinal Martino Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) – Thousands of people are in flight (40,000 according to UN sources) from North Kivu (in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo), moving towards Rwanda and Uganda, while rebel leader Laurent Nkun ...
• 31 October 2008
  AFRICA/DR CONGO - Kivu: the war in “the Switzerland of central Africa” - Analysis Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) – Kivu is a region of 256,000 km sq. in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (former Zaire, Belgian Congo), which gets its name from Lake Kivu which, with an area of 270,000 km ...
• 29 October 2008
  AFRICA/DR CONGO - “Goma has become a starvation camp,” missionaries reveal in a statement denouncing human rights violations in East Congo Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) – “The war that has already claimed 5 million lives has recommenced. The Congolese Bishops are describing it as a ‘cover-up’ war, used to distract attention from the exploitation of the n ...
• 29 October 2008
  AFRICA/SOMALIA - Five terrorist attacks in Somaliland and Puntland, including a UN headquarters building Mogadishu (Agenzia Fides) – There have been a series of attacks reported in Somaliland and Puntland, two regions in the north and northeastern regions of Somalia, generally considered safer than the central region wher ...
• 28 October 2008
  AFRICA/ANGOLA - “The visit of His Holiness Benedict XVI is an inspiration to continue evangelizing the country,” the Apostolic Nuncio of Angola tells Fides Luanda (Agenzia Fides) - “The news of the Holy Father's visit has been received with joy and surprise by the Church and the entire population here,” Archbishop Giovanni Angelo Becciu, Apostolic Nuncio of Angola, told ...
• 27 October 2008
  AFRICA/CAMEROON - “Benedict XVI's visit harkens back to that of John Paul II” the Nuncio of Cameroon tells Fides, following the Pope's announcement Yaounde (Agenzia Fides) - “We are grateful to the Holy Father for having accepted the invitation made by the local Bishops' Conference and the Head of State, to visit Cameroon,” says Archbishop Eliseo Antonio Ariotti ...
• 27 October 2008
  AFRICA/DR CONGO - A demonstration in memory of Archbishop Munzihirwa of Bukavu, killed 12 years ago, calling for an end to hostilities in Kivu Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) – On October 29, the city of Bukavu will host a pacific demonstration promoted by civilian groups, calling for an end to hostilities in Kivu, in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of C ...
• 24 October 2008
  AFRICA/BURUNDI - Rehabilitation Center for deaf children of Gitega: 26 years of spreading awareness among parents and helping youth to earn a diploma and enter the working world Gitega (Agenzia Fides) – The “Centre pour Déficients Auditifs” has been offering quality education to the deaf of Gitega for 26 years now. In 1977, Monsignor Pierre Canisius Batembekeza, while he was serving as he ...
• 22 October 2008
  AFRICA/ZIMBABWE - Opposition threatens to abandon the treaty and call for new elections Harare (Agenzia Fides) – Yet another dispute has arisen over the treaty between Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), who has th ...
• 22 October 2008
  AFRICA/UGANDA - Summit in Kampala for three African regional associations: a preliminary step in the creation of a common African market Kampala (Agenzia Fides) – Harmonizing and coordinating the trade laws and customs regulations, and promoting progress in public transportation infrastructures...these are some of the goals for the Summit taking place ...
• 21 October 2008
  AFRICA/KENYA - Report on post-electoral violence presented. The debate opens: amnesty or judgment for the guilty? Nairobi (Agenzia Fides) - “Kenya is now faced with the same dilemma that other countries face after a violent political confrontation: how to maintain peace, which has finally been reached after a long struggle, with t ...
• 21 October 2008
  AFRICA/RWANDA - Rwanda opts for English Kigali (Agenzia Fides) – While the Summit for French-speaking nations was taking place in Canada, Rwanda not only refused to attend, but made a public statement saying that English will now the official language in pub ...
• 20 October 2008
  AFRICA/ZAMBIA - Thousands of youth from Missionary Childhood gather at the Marian Shrine in Lusaka: “It is gratifying to see that so many children in Zambia today pray, sing, love the church and make sacrifices so that other children of the world may come to know and love Jesus.” Lusaka (Agenzia Fides) – On the 18th of October, thousands of children and 231 animators from 36 parishes of the Archdiocese of Lusaka gathered at the Marian Shrine, for a Mass presided by Vicar General of the Archdioc ...