wfn.org | United Methodists in Congo, Rwanda suffer from volcano

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.ORG>]

Jan. 23, 2002   News media contact: Linda Bloom7(212) 870-38037New York
10-31-71B{018}

By United Methodist News Service

United Methodists in both the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda have
been affected by the lava flows and accompanying earthquakes of the
Nyiragongo volcano, which began erupting on Jan. 17.

Little is known about the situation of church members in Goma, the Congo
border town devastated by lava flows. But the Rev. Clyde Anderson, an
executive with the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, said that as
of Jan. 23, 12 United Methodists, including two children, were reported to
have died on the Rwandan side of the border.

Anderson had received information from the Rev. Jupa Kaberuka, a district
superintendent in Rwanda, who had been forced to take refuge in a school
building, along with many others.

"We have a heavy United Methodist presence along the border," Anderson
explained. "Many homes were destroyed, including that of the district
superintendent."

The destruction comes not only from the lava, but also the earthquakes that
have followed the volcanic eruptions. "Jupa has reported the earthquakes are
still very strong at night," he noted.

More than 20 houses of church members have collapsed, and many people in the
area are sleeping outside because of the fear of further collapse.

Wendy Whiteside, an executive with the United Methodist Committee on Relief
(UMCOR), said the agency is responding to the crisis through Action by
Churches Together (ACT), an organization of ecumenical relief groups. UMCOR
released a $35,000 grant to ACT on Jan. 23, she added.

Norwegian Church Aid and the Lutheran World Federation are among the ACT
members on the scene to make assessments. Food and water for those who had
fled their homes were the most immediate needs.

Goma has seen its share of crises in the past decade. The genocide in Rwanda
drove up to 4 million Rwandan refugees to what was then known as eastern
Zaire in July 1994, where foreign governments and international relief
agencies struggled to keep them alive.

The Board of Global Ministries sponsored major mission work in the region
between September 1994 and September 1996. More than 200 volunteers provided
health care for refugees, assisted in the distribution of resources, built
Jerusalem Church and a United Methodist guesthouse, established a primary
school in Uvira, renovated health clinics in Uvira and Bukavu, and provided
primary services to refugees in the Kimbumba, Biriba and Panzi camps. A
highlight of the mission work was the creation of the United Methodist
Children's Village in Goma.

In January 1996, UMCOR received a $3.5 million grant from the United Nations
High Commissioner on Refugees to manage firewood cutting and distribute
pharmaceuticals to Rwandan and Burundian refugees living in the region.

Although the goal had always been to return the refugees to their homelands,
fighting between Zairian refugees and government troops accelerated that
effort. On Sept. 25, 1996, the missionaries managing the work in Goma, Uvira
and Bukavu were forced to evacuate. When Goma fell to the rebels, supported
by Rwandan troops, on Nov. 2, the United Nations also evacuated its staff.
By Nov. 18, the five refugee camps were empty, with at least a half-million
people crossing the border into Rwanda on foot during the previous three
days.

Because of the political situation in the Congo, the United Methodists
remaining in Goma are in infrequent communication with Bishop Onema Fama.
"The rebels still have control of the land in Goma," Anderson explained.

Goma church members are more likely to relate to Bishop J. Alfred
Ndoricimpa, based in Nairobi, whose jurisdiction includes Rwanda and
Burundi.

The Rwandan church, part of the United Methodist East Africa Annual
Conference, was born in the refugee camps in Goma and then transplanted back
to Rwanda. As of last June, it officially had 48,000 members in three
regions of the country.

Donations to help with UMCOR's response to the volcanic eruptions should be
designated to Advance No. 198400-0. Checks can be placed in church
collection plates or mailed directly to UMCOR at 475 Riverside Drive, Room
330, New York, NY 10115. Credit-card donations can be made by calling (800)
554-8583.

# # #

*************************************
United Methodist News Service
Photos and stories also available at:
http://umns.umc.org