“The Church has become a victim of violence”: they set fire to the Cathedral, attacked the headquarters of Caritas, and murdered a nun.
Newsroom (19/10/2022 11:00 PM, Gaudium Press ) Haiti, a small country in the Caribbean, is experiencing an unprecedented situation. The country has been without a president since July of 2021, when President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated, and new elections have yet to be held. The power struggle has aggravated violence, thus unleashing protests, chaos, and extreme violence in the streets, in a country already plagued by poverty and natural disasters.
Sr. Marcela, a nun from the Franciscan Missionary Fraternity, gave an interview to the Aid to the Church in Need Foundation, in which she said that “the Church has become a victim of violence“: they have set fire to the cathedral, attacked the headquarters of Caritas and murdered a nun.
“It is a horrible struggle. And those who suffer most are the people. The city is in the hands of the gangs: people are starving; the schools are closed; there are no jobs, and the hospitals are closing.”
However, for this nun, the most painful thing is the indifference of the world: “The worst thing is that nobody talks about them. Nobody knows what is happening; they are not interested in what we are suffering in this country.”
Religious persecution
On 25 June 2022, Sr. Luisa del Orto, an Italian nun who had lived in Haiti for 20 years, was murdered. “It is still not known why they killed her. Initially they said it was a robbery, but I am convinced that someone paid to kill her in the street. It is really a horror,” explains Sr. Marcela.
Two weeks later, they set fire to the Cathedral of the Haitian capital, and “tried to kill the firemen who arrived to put out the flames. Then they tried to destroy the Cathedral walls with a truck”, the missionary tells ACN Foundation.
Furthermore, attacks and aggressions against buildings and religious organizations occur in other parts of the country. “In Port-de-Paix, or Les Cayes, and in other cities of the country, they attacked the Caritas buildings, taking everything that was there, including all the humanitarian aid, and destroying the offices of their employees.”
The nun has suffered a year of being unable to go to Mass because the gangs close off the neighbourhood and people cannot get in or out.
About a month ago, the chapel of the Franciscan Missionary Fraternity was set on fire and everything inside was burnt. There is no altar, there are no pews… nothing. “The Blessed Sacrament is safe, because when I leave, for safety I keep it in another, safer place, and thank God He was there.”
Sr. Marcela, the only religious in the mission, traveled to Italy in August, and now this terrible situation prevents her from returning to Haiti: “They asked me not to go back, that it was better to wait a bit. Two months ago, Sr. Luisa was murdered and they don’t want another sister martyr in that country.”
“Please pray for Haiti. Let us ask the Lord to protect all Haitians and give peace to this people,” asked Sr. Marcela.
Compiled by Sandra Chisholm
