ETHIOPIA: Consolata Missionaries Express Solidarity with the Church in Ethiopia amid Tigray Conflict, Reiterates Call for Dialogue
Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA
Leadership of the Consolata Missionaries working in Africa have expressed their solidarity with the Church in Ethiopia following the on-going conflict between Ethiopia’s Federal Government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) echoing the need for dialogue for restoration of peace and stability in the country.
In their collective statement dated Tuesday, December 15, the Provincial Superiors from various African countries including Kenya, Tanzania and Ethiopia noted that they have been “following closely the current wave of violence and unrest, going on in Ethiopia…where a lot of property has been destroyed, many lives lost and thousands have been forced to flee their land to seek for security thus exposing more risks.”
“We express our solidarity with the entire Church and the people of Ethiopia who find themselves in this hard situation,” the statement reads in part.
The members of the Continental Council of Africa highlighted the role of the Church in facilitating conflict resolution giving reference to Pope Saint John Paul II’s message to Ethiopia Catholic Bishops’ Conference (ECBC) during the Ad Limina visit 1997 and noted, “The Church has a special role to play and can lend support to the process of building a society in which all citizens, independent of their ethnic, cultural and religious affiliation, can feel at home and be justly treated.”
The fight between the two parties that has taken over a month has led to thousands of refugees fleeing to Sudan for refuge while lots of property has been destroyed in the country.
In their collective Tuesday statement, the Provincial Superiors lauded the initiatives for dialogue and appealed to the “government of Ethiopia and all the concerned parties to collaborate with the African Union and the international community to intervene decisively and find a lasting solution to the causes of the conflict and tensions in order attain peace and stability.”
The Consolata Missionary leadership concluded, “We are in solidarity with all of you Bishops, clergy, religious men and women and all your communities and we assure you of our prayers.”
