JUBA, South Sudan (RNS) — The current mysterious disappearance of the Rev. Luke Yugue and his driver, Michael Gbeko, in South Sudan has left many Christians within the central African nation fearful about their security and afraid to hold out ministry work throughout the troubled nation.
The 2 are believed to have been kidnapped by ethnic militia forces on April 27 whereas touring by street on a motorcycle from the Nagero Catholic parish to Tombura county within the state of Western Equatoria, bordering the Central African Republic and Congo.
Spiritual leaders, particularly these from the Catholic Church, have been urging congregants throughout the nation of greater than 12.7 million folks, about 61% of them Christian, to wish for the protection of the lacking priest and his driver. The leaders have additionally been desperately interesting to the federal government to assist within the launch of the 2, who’re believed to be held hostage, and to declare a state of emergency within the area the place the kidnapping occurred.
“As a church, we enchantment to Your Excellency to assist us convey Fr. Luka and people with him alive,” Bishop Edward Hiiboro Kussala of South Sudan’s Catholic Diocese of Tombura-Yambio mentioned in his April 29 letter to the nation’s president, Salva Kiir, which the bishop shared with Faith Information Service.
The Rev. Luke Yugue. (Photograph through Vatican Information)
The nation descended into civil battle in December 2013, when Kiir accused his former deputy Riek Machar and 10 others of making an attempt a coup. Though the battle ended with a 2018 peace settlement that introduced Kiir and Machar collectively, the nation continues to see widespread combating and kidnappings, particularly in rural areas.
Between 2013 and 2018, experiences point out, practically 400,000 folks have been killed on account of the civil battle. The battle additionally left over 4 million South Sudanese displaced from their properties, with practically 2.3 million fleeing to neighboring nations, together with Uganda and Kenya.
Dozens of church leaders have been kidnapped or killed by authorities troopers or rebels within the decade of combating. Nearly all of them have been kidnapped or killed whereas finishing up pastoral duties the world over’s youngest nation.
Evangelist Mayol Kuot famous that the current disappearance of spiritual leaders highlights the continued instability within the nation and disrupts their means to offer non secular steering, counseling, well being care, schooling and different help to the populace, in addition to look after orphans and kids.
“The current kidnapping of the priest is surprising to us. It exhibits that the safety state of affairs within the nation will not be bettering in any respect,” mentioned Kuot, who ministers in Malakal, a city in northeastern South Sudan. “We are actually afraid of going out in distant areas to evangelise the Phrase of God and serve weak individuals who need our assist as spiritual leaders.”
Kuot mentioned he has had associates who have been murdered or kidnapped by unknown gunmen in street ambushes and church buildings whereas ministering. This causes different clergy within the nation to be “demoralized,” he mentioned, and unable to proceed working freely as a result of concern of assaults.
South Sudan, pink, in central Africa. Map courtesy of Inventive Commons
“You possibly can’t successfully work in such an setting when you find yourself not sure if you’ll return dwelling secure after ministering to folks,” Kuot mentioned. “We’d like safety from the federal government to proceed ministering to the struggling folks of South Sudan who’ve been displaced from their properties as a result of battle.”
The Rev. Thomas Agou Kuur mentioned dozens of his colleagues from the Episcopal Church have misplaced their lives because the civil battle started within the nation. Kuur, who’s the assistant bishop of Bor Diocese, mentioned that the folks of South Sudan, particularly militia teams, don’t respect church leaders and as a substitute kill them based mostly on ethnicity.
The Dinka and Nuer are the 2 largest ethnic teams in South Sudan, and so they have been combating one another for political and financial energy since even earlier than the civil battle. The Dinka ethnic group typically helps Kiir, whereas the Nuer ethnic group backs Machar.
“When militias from Dinka get a priest from the Nuer tribe, they are going to simply kill him with out contemplating that he’s a priest serving everybody. It’s the identical state of affairs when militias from Nuer get a Dinka priest,” he mentioned.
“We must always care and love one another as a result of all of us belong to God, and subsequently, we should always respect human life,” Kuur added.
In the meantime, Kussala, the bishop of Tombura-Yambio, urged communities and political leaders to reconcile their variations and pursue peace, justice and reconciliation for the sake of the struggling folks of South Sudan.
“I wish to enchantment for an finish to violence within the nation as a result of it’s destroying our lives and livelihoods each day,” he mentioned, stating tribalism and hatred as the principle enemy of South Sudanese. “As a church, we’ll proceed to stroll the trail of peace and to achieve out to the weak who need our assist. We urge the federal government to guard the nation from violence and church leaders as they perform their ministries.”
