DRC: Bishops Denounce Insecurity in the Wake of Priest’s killing

KINSHASA, OCTOBER 25, 2016 (CISA) –Democratic Republic of Congo Catholic Bishops (CENCO) have denounced increased insecurity in large parts of the country.

“We are concerned about the massacres in North-Kivu, in particular, in the city and in the Territory of Beni,” said the bishops in their message after the meeting of the CENCO Committee in charge of monitoring the electoral process.

“From the killings in Central Kasai to clashes between security forces and the militia of the traditional leader Kamuina-Nsapu, from inter-community conflicts that are causing many victims in several provinces and the resurgence of banditry,” added the bishops.

This comes days after unknown persons killed Fr Joseph Mulimbi Nguli in the southern Democratic Republic of Congo the night of October 22, reported Fides.

Fr Nguli, 52, was the parish priest of San Martino in Katuba municipality, Lubumbashi, Upper Katanga Province’s capital.

Bishop Dennis Moto, the vicar general of the Catholic Archdiocese of Lubumbashi told AFP: “At around 22.00 two armed masked men, who had entered the family property where he was spending his holiday, shot him in the stomach while he was driving his vehicle into the compound.”

He remained confident in the local security that Fr Nguli’s killers would be found and brought to justice.

According to Vatican Radio three Catholic pastoral agents in DRC have been killed under various circumstances; Fr Vincent Machozi killed on March 20, Basankusu a Caritas Accountant killed on August 11 and now Fr Joseph Nguli.

The Bishops also denounced “attacks in parishes and religious communities, in particular in Kinshasa, Kananga and Bukavu.”

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