CMS Ireland David Gough

Pray that Egypt will be a 'safe place'

2011-05-16T00:00:00Z

It was with great sadness that the Most Rev Dr Mouneer Anis, Bishop of the Diocese of Egypt, issued a statement about the situation in Imbaba, Giza – a densely populated area just a few kilometres south of Cairo. At the beginning of the week there were clashes in Imbaba between Christians and Muslims. The result of these clashes was the death of 12 people, with more than 232 injured, and the burning of many homes, cars and shops, as well as the Church of St Mary which suffered a great deal of fire damage.

The Bishop reports that this outbreak of clashes and violence was due to a rumour that a Christian woman who converted to Islam was being hidden by a Coptic Orthodox Church. This prompted a group of Muslim fundamentalists to gather around the church who wanted to enter the church to search for this woman. Young people from the church prevented them from entering, fearing that they may burn the church.

The situation escalated and attempts by moderate Muslims and church priests to calm the demonstrators on both sides failed. When shots were fired and Molotov cocktails thrown, the army became involved and things quieted down. However, the Bishop reports that the following day extremist Muslims came and burned several blocks of flats and shops owned by Christians.

Bishop Mouneer is part of Beth El-Eila (House of the Family), a new group which gathers together the heads of Christian denominations, several Muslim leaders and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar. An emergency meeting was called by the Grand Imam on Tuesday. He reports,

“We all agreed that this incident should be taken very seriously by the authorities, and that those who caused these destructive clashes must be brought to justice. It is worth mentioning that previous clashes between Christians and Muslims have always been solved through community reconciliation. The meeting also appointed a committee to go and visit Imbaba, and report back. I was one of this committee, and we spent eight hours today [Tuesday] visiting and listening…

“The damage we saw was indescribable. The area looked as if it was a battlefield, because of the many tanks and soldiers. I was moved by the story of one of the guards of St Mary’s Church, who refused to denounce Jesus Christ… “

In closing, the Bishop makes an appeal for prayers for Egypt,
“This is at least the fifth tragic incident since the first day of the year, when a church was bombed in Alexandria. There is no doubt that inter-religious tension is growing in Egypt, and this needs a real strategic plan to combat it. This is what we are trying to do through Beth El-Eila.

“I very much appreciate your prayers so that the Lord may transform this difficult situation. We all hope the Egypt will be a safe place for all Egyptians.”

The Bishop said, “I’m extremely thankful for the prayers of all those in Ireland and especially for the support shown by our Partners CMS Ireland and those who pray regularly for the work of the Diocese of Egypt.”

Please join with us in praying for the tensions in Egypt. Give thanks for the work of the Beth El-Eila Group, and pray that reconciliation efforts would be fruitful, bringing lasting peace and stability.

If you would like more information about CMS Ireland’s link with Egypt, “click here”: http://www.cmsireland.org/work/countries/egypt.

Five teachers being trained in Yei

2011-04-11T00:00:00Z

Thanks to generous gifts and donations from individuals, Parishes, Dioceses and International Donors over recent years, CMS Ireland has continued to build much needed schools across 4 Dioceses in South Sudan.

It is because of this vital support CMS Ireland has been able to fund the building of 7 Primary Schools and a Vocational College in Yei Diocese, 2 Primary Schools, a Secondary School and Chaima College in Maridi Diocese, 1 block of 3 classrooms in Ibba Diocese, 2 Primary Schools in Kajo-Kej Diocese and a Girls Secondary School in Kadugli Diocese (Nuba Mountains). But education is not just about buildings, the training of 49 teachers was also an integral part of the British Government’s Basic Services Fund grant.

Now, thanks to gifts from 5 Parishes we are able to support the training of a further 5 students on the 2-year course at Yei Teacher Training College. Thanks to the generosity of Agherton Parish, Larne and Inver Parish and Lisburn Cathedral, 3 students – Luate Edward, Ayume Isaac and Santos Aligo Timothy are being trained for Mongo Primary School. We are also grateful to Delgany Parish and Kill O’ the Grange Parish for supporting 2 students – Juma Moses William and Meta Isaac to be trained as teachers for Payawa Primary School.

If you or your Parish is interested in supporting this very worthwhile teacher training project please contact me, David Gough, at the CMS Ireland Belfast office. Education is the key to the future of millions of young people in the new Republic of South Sudan.

Libyan Christians Safe - Continue to Pray for Egypt

2011-02-24T00:00:00Z

I have this week received a short message from Bishop Mouneer who has managed to speak to a member of the clergy of the Church in Libya. At present, they are all safe and Bishop Mouneer asks us to remember them in prayer.

“On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us.” (2 Corinthians 1:10b)

My Dear Friends,

Greetings in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ!

Thank you for your continuous prayer for the people of Egypt. I do not know where we would without your prayers. Thank God that we are all safe. The current situation is still foggy. Not only foggy, but it is very, very difficult to predict what is going to happen. There are voices that cry for an Islamic state and other voices that don’t want this; they want a secular and pluralistic society based on democracy.

We are so grateful to all of you who have generously contributed towards our ministry to the disadvantaged at this time of turmoil. Thank you so much!

Yesterday there were big demonstrations in Tahrir Square as people continue to celebrate the Revolution. Sheikh Yousef Al Qaradawi, a strong Egyptian Imam who lives in Qatar, came especially to lead the Friday Prayers and to preach to the crowds who are estimated to be more than one million. Sheikh Yousef previously was not allowed to lead any of these activities within Egypt because of his extreme views. This gave a serious signal to many of us about the direction that may take place.

Christians in Egypt request the drop of Article 2 of the current Egyptian Constitution which states that the Islamic Sharia is the sole source of legislation. We find this restricting in many ways the development of a pluralistic democratic country. It also contradicts with Article 40 which affirms rights for every citizen in all aspects.

At this point, the best we can do is to pray so that God’s will would prevail. We are encouraging all Christians to be more active and participate in the upcoming elections.

Once again, thank you for your prayers and your support. Please continue to pray for us and for our beloved country Egypt.

May the Lord bless you!

Yours in Christ,

+Mouneer

Pray for the Church in North Africa

2011-02-24T00:00:00Z

Certainly the revolution on the streets of North Africa seems to continue to spread, from the original protests in Tunisia, not only across the 4 North African countries of the Diocese of Egypt (Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt) but also Morocco and Jordan, now into the Gulf and Middle East (Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Syria and Iran). There are many accounts of horrendous atrocities and indeed stories of great encouragement that have been shared with me – many are too sensitive to commit to email, but be assured God is using the Church in significant ways through this turmoil.

Please pray for the reform process in Egypt, that wisdom will prevail and general conditions will improve for all Egyptians. Pray too that Egyptian Christians, who account for 10%+ of the population, will have some representation in the new government. Please remember to pray especially for the Most Rev. Dr. Mouneer Hanna Anis Bishop of the Diocese of Egypt with North Africa and the Horn of Africa, President Bishop of the Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East and the Church in the region he is responsible for.

In a recent email the Bishop wrote…

My dear friends,

Millions are celebrating in the streets of Egypt, after President Mubarak has stepped down.

Tonight our beloved Egypt started to write a new chapter of her story. I pray that no single group would dictate its agenda but all of us must be given the right and the freedom to write together this chapter.

We need to earnestly pray for God’s Grace and wisdom and for a new and free Egypt. Thank you so much for your prayers.

Yours in Him,

+Mouneer

Please also remember to pray for Christians in the entire Arab world and especially Libya at this time, as the unrest continues to spread. People in the regions other countries are encouraged by what the Egyptians (and Tunisians) have achieved and are seeing this as an opportunity to bring about change in their own countries. However, it is unlikely the authorities in many countries will not be as tolerant of civil unrest as the Egyptians were, so many innocent people could suffer.

Eye witness report from Cairo

2011-02-02T00:00:00Z

It seems that Egyptians have finally reached the limit of their tolerance with the oppression, corruption, increasing poverty and hopelessness that they having experienced under President Mubarak’s rule, and with living in fear of the police and the authorities.

“Cairo is a mess; all of Egypt is in a mess. It needs prayer!” shares Nelly, an ex-apt living in Egypt, who has been speaking with CMS Ireland about recent events. Nelly reflects that recent events may be an accumulation of 30 years of President Hosni Mubarak’s controlling rule, or perhaps an answer to 100 years of diligent prayers by the Christians for their own country, Egypt.

“When we came here to Egypt in 1996 nobody dared to talk about the government or the president. But over the years, people began to complain and dared to say what they felt. Life has become intolerably difficult. Satellite TV seemed to help to open things up, but there hasn’t been any improvement for the people – the rich are richer and the poor much poorer… to the point that they can’t take it anymore.”

EGYPT TIMELINE

Nelly has shared about the escalation of events with me, I have put her reports into a timeline…

Tuesday 25 January

A ‘holiday’ day called Police Day. Thousands of people decided to protest against the Egyptian government, ‘inspired’ by the protests that happened in Tunisia recently. The police arrest many people. This resulted in incensing the crowds and the people spilt onto the streets in even larger numbers.

Word was being spread far and wide via email, text messages, Facebook, Twitter and through the mobile phone calls. At some point midweek the phone networks, internet and even some TV stations were blocked.

Police stations were set on fire, and prisons have been broken open. Shops and other places were targeted and also set on fire. Looting by protestors (and now gangs of troublemakers) broke out, and is now out of control. Protestors have been throwing molotov cocktails at the police but also attacking shops, and residential buildings.

Nelly reflected, "It’s a mess with demonstrations everywhere.”

Another contact, Yacoub, said, "It’s like all of Cairo is burning and so are all the main towns and cities in Egypt, not just Cairo!” Yacoub was outside of Cairo with his family at the time. His apartment was broken into, messed up, and looted. A neighbour contacted him and the family quickly returned to their home. Thankfully, the thieves only took two old laptops, some change and small items, but no large amounts of money.

Wednesday 26th January

Nelly almost ended up in the middle of the clashes on her way home from work.

“Suddenly, I thought, ‘Huh? There are lots of people… there is a cameraman!, a lot of stones are being thrown, oh no, a fire!…’ I couldn’t even get home my normal way, so I tried another way and I couldn’t as all the roads were closed. Finally I took the Ring Road outside the city; it took me 4.5 hours to get home!”

Nelly reports how the looting continued with two large department stores being plundered and burned.

“Here where I live, there’s a sports/social club and it has been robbed and burned twice now – I saw boys running down the streets with stolen things. I saw someone throw a Molotov cocktail at the police, but they didn’t aim it right and a tree caught on fire. I thought, ‘I need to call people to pray for this craziness’ but the mobile network wasn’t working. So I thought, ’I’ll just pray’.

At one point the police were trying to control the crowds but then they seemed to disappear. Nelly tells us, “Even last night, the police were shooting: at the crowds of troublemakers, and also into the air. But shots fired in the air killed innocent people. A 30-year-old man on a balcony, and a 10-year-old girl who just looked over the balcony, were killed by shots fired by the police.”

But now the police are gone. "In 14 years, there was a policeman on every street corner in Cairo; now, there’s not a single one! The news network, Al-Jazeera, reported that 63 people died, but I’m sure it is more” says Nelly.

Friday 28th January

Friday – the day for prayer and people go to the mosque. Yet this Friday was named by Egyptians as the “Day of Rage”. There have been tens of thousands of people demonstrating in the streets and not only in Cairo.

The population is now joining together to protect each other against the troublemaking gangs in the streets; apparently, people are using sticks and knives to protect themselves and their homes against the intruders.

Nelly shares that despite the unrest she personally feels safe. Her neighbours are protective of her and invite her to eat with them and stay with them if she needs to. Her building is secure: nobody can climb onto their roof, and there are iron doors on the ground level which are locked. She said she won’t go to work until things have settled.

Yacoub tells us, “We are not leaving our apartment building. But we will have to go out during the day to try to get some food. The looters stole the food in our refrigerator – about EGP300 worth!” (£30 – a lot for his family)

A curfew is imposed with people banned from the streets from 4pm to 8am. The army has been called in (the situation is a “national security threat”); there are tanks on the streets. However, it seems they are not acting against the people – and in some cases they are celebrating with the people.

Nelly said, “I hope it’ll end – there has to be a solution, but I can’t see it stopping soon.”

President Mubarak spoke to the people on Friday evening, 3 days after protests began, to announce the dissolution of his cabinet and their replacement by new ministers. But the people do not seem satisfied with this and want him to go as previous shuffles of the cabinet have made no significant reform.

Saturday evening saw the first Vice President in decades.

Much has developed since we received this information with President Mubarak deciding to step down in September and the recent clashes of pro Mubarak supporters and protesters in Tahrir Square, Cairo. What the future holds is indeed uncertain but let’s join with our brothers and sisters in prayer for peace…

Report from Refuge Egypt in Cairo

2011-02-02T00:00:00Z

Dear Friends and Partners,

This is the first day of Internet access since last Friday, we trust that it will remain open but are working quickly to do essential things and get updates out in different directions.

We effectively closed Refuge-Egypt services last Saturday until further notice. We cannot estimate when we might be able to re-open.

As program staff live in various suburbs of the city the curfew, transportation limitations and people being concerned about their safety and their property, are restricting them getting to their place of work. Now that mobile phone services have been resumed we are maintaining good and regular communication between staff so that we keep each other abreast of developments. From the reports I have received from staff, there have so far been good relations between the refugee and Egyptian communities. Food supplies have, however, been getting more scarce.

Our main concern is to assist medical needs amongst the refugee communities. Thankfully many of them have direct numbers for our Doctors, which a few have made use of. We have also asked the hospitals that we contract with to receive patients directly. The problem is that the hospitals themselves have not been open.

To be honest nobody knows how this situation will develop. As I write, I am listening to the live reporting on the BBC website on violence erupting in Tahrir Square. Whether that will spread out to the suburbs, who knows.

I know that the UNHCR office is closed. I cannot believe that St Andrews Refugee Service, AMERA, CARITAS or other refugee programs are operating either. This comes at a time when we ourselves were seeing significant increases in the numbers of South Sudanese arriving in Cairo.

Let the Holy Spirit lead your prayers. These are significant times for the Egyptian people. The refugee communities are, in many ways, unable to do anything but keep safe. Their governments will not be providing flights to get them out.

Personally I am still here with my family. Like others we watch and wait and pray.

Thank you for the messages and encouragements that you have sent.

Yours in His service,
Jonathan Lee
Director, Refuge-Egypt

Preparing for the Referendum & A Prayer Request

2010-12-29T00:00:00Z

On their return from a CMS Ireland META to Yei Diocese in Sudan in July Archdeacon Stephen Forde and Canon Cecil Wilson shared with me their concerns over the future of Sudan following the January Referendum. Many locals they spoke to at the time in Yei feared that the North would block succession and that another war would be the outcome.

This conversation resulted in the 3 of us forming what we call the Sudan Partnership Group, the primary focus of the group is to lobby on behalf of the Episcopal Church of Sudan. David Maganda, a Ugandan who is also a Sudanese citizen and represents the Sudanese community in Ireland and Karen Bushy, Connor Diocese’s Communication Officer then joined our small group.

Once we had received the blessing of Archbishop Daniel Deng of the Episcopal Church of Sudan we set about trying to sign up the support of the Church of Ireland. To date we have managed to recruit the support of Archbishop Alan Harper, the Bishop Alan Abernathy, Bishop Harold Miller and Bishop Michael Jackson, We have circulated a number of Press Releases resulting in articles in the Church of Ireland Gazette and coverage on many Diocesan websites as well as CMS Ireland’s website.

The group has also had a 2-hour meeting with 3 top Civil Servants from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Dublin. We met with Kevin Dowling, Director of the Irish Government’s Africa Section on December 9, exactly a month to the day before a Referendum in Sudan. The group also has an appointment with the First Minister, Peter Robinson, but unfortunately it will be after the vote.

Please pray for us as we continue to represent CMS Ireland’s 7 Global partners giving them a voice here as they prepare for what could be the birth of the new country Southern Sudan or could as easily escalate into conflict especially around Abyei on the fault line of the north and south.

CMS Ireland will be hosting a special prayer event at its Belfast Office on Friday 7th January 2011 from 11.30am to focus on this crucial moment in Sudan’s history. You are invited to join with our 7 partner Dioceses in Sudan to pray for a peaceful and fair Referendum in Southern Sudan on 9th January.

My good friend Rev Atovura Martin has just emailed me with some disturbing news just weeks before the critical Referendum.

Martin takes up the story, “The Lord’s Resistance Army attacked part of our Deanery church area at Nzumara in the morning of 22nd December. Two men were killed, two wounded and they abducted a pregnant woman and a baby. Nothing is yet heard about them.“

During this time of peace and goodwill to all men please pray for Bishop Justin and our partners and many friends in Maridi Diocese at this time and especially for the safe return of the mother and baby.

Interview on Radio Ulster’s Sunday Sequence

2010-12-23T00:00:00Z

BBC Radio Ulster’s Sunday Sequence presenter William Crawley interviewed me last Sunday 19th December as part of my role in the Sudan Partnership Group.

This conversation resulted in the 3 of us forming what we call the Sudan Partnership Group, the primary focus of the group is to lobby on behalf of the Episcopal Church of Sudan.

During the short interview William asked me what the Church was doing in the run up to the Referendum.

I shared that on my recent visit to Sudan, I had been able to attend one of the many conferences Diocese’s were holding to inform the people about the Referendum voting process. He questioned whether the Church was telling it’s people how to vote and I was able to explain that the Church was concentrating on telling people about the registration and the voting process – not twisting peoples arms to vote in a particular way.

When he invited me to explain how the group had been trying to engage people her I was able to share how Archbishop Alan Harper and several Bishop’s were supporting our efforts. Also how we had circulated Press Releases and also had a 2-hour meeting with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Dublin exactly a month to the day before a Referendum in Sudan and the Sudan Partnership Group has an appointment with the First Minister, Peter Robinson, but unfortunately it will be after the Referendum vote.

One of our aims was to call upon the guarantors of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement to ensure that the right of the people for self-determination is upheld. We asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to represent this view at the Foreign Minister meeting last Monday in Brussels about Sudan Referendum.

It was encouraging that the EU had deployed a 16-strong team of observers to monitor the voter registration in Sudan and that the Carter Centre had already reported that as far as their 50 observers were concerned the “…registration process was credible.”

To date over 3.2 million people (96% of eligible voters) have registered for the Sudan Referendum: 116,890 in north Sudan; 9,431 in Australia; 2,294 in Canada; 2,985 in Egypt; 7,370 in Ethiopia; 13,291 in Kenya and 654 in UK. There are hundreds of Sudanese resident in Ireland must travel to London to register, and again to vote, in order to make their voices heard.

With registration or voting not possible in Ireland, how likely is it that the Southern Sudan community here will be able to travel to register and vote in London?

Reports from our partners in Sudan suggest that tens of thousands of Southerners have been arriving arriving in Abyei from the North. Part of the problem is that the North and SPLM are yet to agree on the Abyei Referendum (which is also scheduled for 9th January). Rumours are rife that the North are supporting the Arab Messeriya (pastoralists) to set up an alternative government in Abyei making it a potential catalyst for a return to war. In July 2009 Court of Arbitration Hague defined the disputed border SPLM and the North agreed on this ruling. But the issues now seem wider than the border and include disputes over the oil, land issues, water and lifestock grazing rights and between the Dinka Ngok and Arab Messeriya.

There have been reports that the North is bombing over Southern border and of course the WikiLeaks speculation that Omar al-Bashir siphoned $9bn in oil money and deposited it in foreign accounts some, allegedly in Lloyds bank London. Also that both the North and South have extensive forces positioned at the borders.

With all these rumours, delays and jockeying for position the bottom line is that we need to pray for a peaceful and fair referendum on the 9th January so that there is freedom for all the people to vote. We pray that Southerners in the north to be given the opportunity to vote without retribution as well as security of the displaced in the North and for the citizenship of Southerners in the North.

Please use this prayer for the Referendum written by one of our partners Bishop Anthony Poggo, of Kajo-Keji…

Prayer for the Referendum

Almighty God, we thank you for the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). As the CPA comes to the end, we pray for the preparations for the Referendum.

We pray that all the plans for the preparations for Southern Sudan’s referendum that is to take place on 9th January will be done well. There are many challenges; we pray that you will enable the various actors to overcome these obstacles. We pray for the work of the Southern Sudan Referendum Commission as well as the State Tasks Forces that they will conduct the exercise well.

We thank you that the voter registration has gone well in most parts of Southern Sudan. As we enter the official campaign period, we pray that this will be conducted peacefully.

We pray for the two partners who are discussing post referendum issues on citizenship, oil, national debt and currency so that these discussions will be successful. Pray that the issue of Abyei will also be discussed and agreed upon amicably.

We pray that the actual voting will be held in a free and fair atmosphere and that all the partners will accept the results.

We pray this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Official opening of Gambella Anglican Centre, Ethiopia

2010-12-15T00:00:00Z

Tuesday 16th November, the day of the opening had been declared a Muslem feast: Al Adha and so, at 08:30, when we were all ready (the event was due to start then), we had to wait until nearly nine before the first guests arrived. The Irish Ambassador, one of the first to arrive, took her seat with the Roman Catholic Bishop Abuna Angelo and the other guests and as we waited for the Regional President to arrive, the St. Luke’s Sunday School choir arrived, dressed in blue tabards, singing as they entered the compound.

At 09:15, the President had arrived, we were all seated and the ceremony began: a speech of welcome from me (all protocols observed!), the presentation of the building, the ribbon cut and the plaque unveiled (by Bishop Mouneer and the Regional President), a Bible reading and homily (by me), prayers of thanksgiving led by Bishop Mouneer, a tour of the Library and other buildings led by Sam Moody (Project Director), a brief programme of wonderful Nuer and Annuak singing, followed by speeches. Bishop Mouneer, Sila Maguire, the Irish Ambassador for Ethiopia, David Gough, CMS Ireland and President Omot Obang, Gambella Regional Government all delivered inspiring speeches.

The morning finished with refreshments in the partially finished Canteen block. Once everyone had gone, our guests retired to the Guest House for lunch. The churches gathered to feed everyone, ostensibly, but we learnt later that none of the clergy managed to get any food, because they’d come to the coffee reception. That means that 200 people managed to eat 6,000 Birr (£234/€278) worth of large bull, very quickly – an astonishing feat!

By 15:00, everyone had gone; Bishops and guests went to rest, in the heat of the day.

By 18:15, as we were getting ready to be picked up by Abraham, to go to the Baro Hotel for the buffet reception, the sky darkened to a beautiful blackcurrant-grey over the mountains to the east and a strong wind picked up before the heavens opened and heavy rain freshened the air. We arrived at the Baro in the middle of a power cut, in the rain, but quickly found our seats at one of the tables, set out in the dining room. In the outer room, we passed a table beautifully laid out and positively groaning with food, the centrepiece of which was a whole, roasted lamb, standing upright, with lettuce in its mouth.

The President arrived shortly afterwards, together with the cabinet ministers who had not been able to come in the morning, to take his seat at the high table. The conversation over supper was of agriculture, academic studies and Europe. After supper, I stood to thank everyone for coming and the President presented Ambassador Sile Maguire, Bishop Mouneer, myself with bead-decorated ostrich eggs and David Gough and Janice with beaded wristbands.

When everyone had left, we returned to the Guest House where, once again, we sat on the veranda, as we reflected back over yet another extraordinary day.

A Christmas gift for the children of Maridi

Earlier this year I reported on the completion of the second block of Haddow Secondary School in Maridi supported by CMS Ireland. Now I’m thrilled to update you on the progress of another new school for Maridi Diocese.

The construction work of the 2 classroom blocks at the new Christ Town Primary School in Maridi town centre is progressing well. One block is supported by CMS Ireland and Africa Revival is funding the second, thanks to John Spens. The walls of both blocks are completed, one to ring beam level and the other is ready for the roofing and, as you can see in the photos, the shutters have already been fitted and even the chalkboard is plastered in the classrooms. Roofing work is due to start in the coming days. Also the digging of the pit latrines has commenced and they have already reached five meters deep.

It is expected that the construction work will be completed before Christmas. What a wonderful and timely gift for the 400 plus children who currently attend the grossly over-crowded school in what was the old Christ Town Church mud-walled, grass-roofed building.

Please continue to pray so that we can access funding to complete the much needed 3-block 8-classroom Primary School at Christ Town.

'S' for St Luke’s official opening in Sudan

2010-12-07T00:00:00Z

The St Luke’s Primary Health Care Centre opening ceremony commenced with a speech from Bishop Peter Amidi of Lainya where he acknowledged the partnership and the generous support of CMS Ireland. He also thanked our main donor Irish Aid, but acknowledged the support from Parishes and individuals from the Church in Ireland through CMS Ireland.

Archbishop Deng and Dr Emmanuel jointly cut the ribbon and unveiled the plaque. The guests were then directed through the Primary Health Care Centre as well as an opportunity to ask some questions. The Minister of Health was very impressed with what he saw, especially the equipment and facilities. He also committed to improving the facilities at the Lainya Community Hospital, which he said he also visited, and he said needed much support and investment.

There then followed a total of 9 speeches, including Poppy and I, the Mother’s Union leader, Yasuwa Ladu the local Elder, the Paramount Chief, Bishop Peter Amidi of Lainya, the Commissioner the State Minister for health and Archbishop Deng all made speeches.

Poppy’s speech was quite quirky and very creative – every point starting with ‘S’ – St Luke’s; Solar panels; quality Staff; Successful beginning of clinic despite all the trials in setting it up; Students being trained; Sustainability-the needs we will have in future; Salisbury – thanks for the annual donation of medicines and the high quality Service being now offered in Lainya.

In my address I reiterated the importance of partnership with the Church in Ireland and our Global Partners. I also acknowledged the support of Irish Aid for the 3-year programme. I used a handshake as a symbol of friendship and partnership and the fact that it is a 2-way long-term relationship.

The young people of the Diocese also put on a 30-minute drama especially for the occasion highlighting the cultural stigma with HIV/AIDS depicting that going to the local Witch Doctor was not the answer, it was much better to go to the PHCC for the proper tests and treatment.

Afterwards, the ceremony we had a banquet of meal to celebrate the opening of St Luke’s PHCC. Later that evening we drove back to Yei satisfied that the opening was a real success and the PHCC would make a significant impact to the lives of the people in the Lainya area.