Bangladesh: pastoral activity tailor made for man
Dhaka (AsiaNews) - Reception Centres, home based pastoral services, temporary hostels, cultural inter-religious meeting places for employees. A rapidly changing environment in Bangladesh needs a reinvented pastoral response, tailored made to the individual. In Bangladesh, where the vast majority are non Christian but the problems are common to different ethnic groups and religions, the Catholic Church must respond to the emergence of new problems, through small steps.
A relatively recent phenomenon affects the working world, especially women, which in the last 30 years has radically changed. With the arrival of the textiles and clothing factories the demand for unskilled and low cost labour has exploded: millions of girls have poured from the countryside - where they barely left the house - into big cities like Dhaka. In this context, the Catholic missionaries have tried to be points of reference for these young people.
A first answer comes from the experience of a technical school in north Dinajpur, which began to "collaborate" with the parish of Rangpur15 years ago. After completing the courses, the youth of the village came to town to look for work: a difficult time, where the young people are afraid, are under enormous pressure and often are cheated by the local mafia. Thus, the church opened to accommodate some local boys, giving them a foothold from where to start.
The work of the Marist Sisters targets working-class women, in particular supporting the workers from a medical point of view. Women are generally left to fend for themselves when it comes to health, they are often clumsy and ignorant: instead, many of these missionaries have become doctors or nurses, to assist the women during pregnancy, and meet all their health problems. A similar experience is that of the Salesian Sisters of France, whose pastoral outreach involves the workers of the beauty parlours : girls who, even at best, have very little freedom and a punishing schedule.
The initiative is part of the parish of Kewachala, halfway between Dhaka and Mymensingh also falls into this category. A few years ago there was only a small piece of land, where many Hindu and Muslim workers waited during their break because they were forced to leave the factory but had no refreshment areas (except some shack that sells prepared food and tea). There, Fr. Gianantonio Baio (PIME missionary) transformed the chapel into a real mission: a church, a men's hostel, a school and a credit union. On 1st May this centre for labourers and workers was inaugurated, providing the rooms where people can rest between shifts sanitation, shelter from the rain. And, hopefully, some cultural input.
.png)
