AFRICA/DR CONGO - Bishops denounce insecurity and threats to family

Tuesday, 30 June 2015

Kinshasa (Agenzia Fides) - The Bishops of the Democratic Republic of Congo denounce the insecurity in the north, east and south of the Country, in a statement sent to Agenzia Fides at the end of their 52nd Plenary Assembly, which was held in Kinshasa from 22 to 26 June.
"The Bishops - says the statement - have heard the cry of alarm of the population of the Territory of Bondo, following the massacres and kidnappings perpetrated by the LRA (Lord's Resistance Army), as well as the poignant message of the Episcopal Provincial Assembly of Bukavu (see Fides 26/05/2015), which denounces the silence in the face of three major dangers in Kivu: a climate of genocide; a breeding ground of jihadist fundamentalism and a process of Balkanization".
The document reiterates the position of the Episcopal Conference on national dialogue promoted by President Joseph Kabila, which "must take place in strict compliance with the constitutional and institutional framework in force". To be more precise without reaching a constitutional change to allow outgoing President to stand for election for a third term.
At a pastoral level the Bishops point out the dangers the family faces, the victim of "different forces that seek to distort and even destroy it". This is why, after the Synod in October dedicated to the family, the Congolese Bishops have called a national Conference on the family for the month of February 2016. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 30/06/2015)


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