Act of faith: the Catholic priest who puts his life on the line to save Muslims in Cent African Rep
In a predominantly Christian country terrorised by Muslim rebels as recently as January, Father Bernard Kinvi took his life in his hands when he resolved to protect Muslims threatened by sectarian violence. But the priest, who has won a Human Rights Watch award for his work, believes the conflict in CAR is misunderstood – and says his mission is far from over
Father Bernard Kinvi, who directs the hospital at the Catholic mission in Bossemptele, CAR, has offered shelter to Muslims. Photograph: Sarah Lee for the Guardian
Sam Jones
Thursday 13 November 2014 08.41 EST
The test of faith for which Father Bernard Kinvi had waited half his life arrived one January dawn when a heavily armed man with a necklace of talismans pulled up on a motorbike outside the Roman Catholic mission hospital in Bossemptele.
Despite being a member of the anti-balaka militia that has slaughtered thousands of Muslims in the Central African Republic (CAR), the rider had come on a mission of mercy.
He and his comrades had caught a Muslim man on a patrol the previous night and were planning to kill him. But he was having second thoughts and had come to ask Kinvi to plead for the man’s life. The militiamen, he said, would be too afraid of angering a priest to go through with their threats. Would he come?
Kinvi thought about it. On the one hand, he had never seen the armed visitor before, and knew well what the anti-balaka were capable of; on the other, a man’s life was at stake.
Rwandan peacekeeping troops look on as a woman in Bangui, CAR, flees after an attack by anti-balaka militia. Photograph: Issouf Sanogo/AFP/Getty Images
http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2014/nov/13/central-african-republic-catholic-priest-saves-muslims-seleka-christians-father-bernard-kinvi
Fr. Kinvi belongs to the Order of St. Camillus.
http://camillians.org/
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