Misiones Salesianas, the Salesian Mission Office in Madrid, offers an overview of the most serious situations in the world, from Ukraine to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where children continue to suffer from all these injustices.
The invasion and bombing in Ukraine continues, new conflicts in Africa have forced millions of people to flee their homes, the consequences of climate change affect more and more people and populations around the world. All this leads to poverty, food insecurity, child labour, school absenteeism, early marriage and the forced recruitment of children.
Millions of people are once again experiencing an escalation of violence in the Kivu region in the north-east of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The conflict has intensified and many people have had to leave their homes to save their lives. In the region there are more than five million internally displaced persons and, in Goma alone, the Salesian missionaries host 28,000 people who have fled violence and have spontaneously settled on the grounds of the Salesian Don Bosco Ngangi Centre.
Christine is a minor living in Don Bosco Ngangi, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. "I want to ask for peace for my country, so that children like me can go back to school, our families can work and we can live in a safe and peaceful place. I would like to have books to read, notebooks and pencils to write, because when I grow up I want to be a writer "she said.
Even in Syria , the situation remains serious. Ten months have passed since the earthquakes that devastated the north of the country and thirteen years since the beginning of the war. Thousands of people are left homeless and the needs are increasing. According to international agencies operating in Syria, more than 15 million people need humanitarian aid to survive. The Salesians continue to work in Syria and are with the population, especially children and young people.
Ahmed is 10 years old and lives in Aleppo. “A few months ago an earthquake destroyed my house. Everything trembled and everything fell around us. My family and I had to flee in the middle of the night and since then we have been in a temporary shelter" he writes in his Christmas letter. "My best friend Hassan wasn't as lucky as me. Now he's in heaven and I know he's watching over me. I miss playing football with him, his laughter and telling him my secrets. I don't want any toys or a new ball this Christmas. I want to ask for something different. I want all the people who suffered from the earthquake to have a home again. I want all children like me to have a safe place to live with their families, and that we can go back to school and play happily. I would also like there to be more peace in the world, that there are no more earthquakes or wars to make us suffer" he concludes.
Sirens and bombs are still the reality in Ukraine. The end of the war does not seem to be near and there are currently three million more people in need of humanitarian aid than at the beginning of the year. In total, 17.6 million people are in this situation. Nearly six million people live as refugees in other countries. The Salesians continue to support the education of hundreds of children and provide humanitarian aid in Ukraine.
Nicolai writes these sentences from the shelter of his school: "I live in Ukraine and many things have happened since the beginning of the war. I lived with my family near Dnipro. I don't have a house today or I don't know if it still exists. I live with my mother and brothers in Mariapolis, thanks to the Salesians. My father is at the front and this will be the second Christmas we spend at war and I'm getting used to the sound of sirens. I don't want toys again this year. My request is much more important... I just ask that, please, the war in Ukraine ends. I want peace. If the war ends, we can go home and be with my father. The sirens will stop and people will be able to live a life like the one we had before. "
Millions of people, therefore, suffer as a result of wars and violence in Ukraine, Palestine, Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria, Niger, Colombia... More than 100 million people are displaced or refugees in other countries. More than 250 million children do not have access to education and millions more cannot receive health care. These figures should make us think every day, but especially at Christmas.
"We should feel closer than ever to all those who suffer and live in a spirit of encounter and reconciliation" write Misiones Salesianas. The suffering of a single person would be enough to give us the spirit of Christmas, but millions of people around the world need our generosity to have hope and achieve the long-awaited peace."
Source: Salesian Missions
