Bangladeshi Student: young people need meeting places (Photos)

by Sumon Corraya

A contribution to the Synod underway in the Vatican. The young people of Bangladesh "are not interested in the dirty affairs of politics, they are adamant and want to change everything with virulence". The Church must always "make its own voice heard" on critical issues.

Dhaka (AsiaNews) - Young people in Bangladesh need meeting places, in cities and suburbs, where they can talk, read or have fun, says William Nokrek, a 24-year-old from garo [ethnic group present in the north of the country].

A student at the University in Dhaka he is also president of the Bangladesh Catholic Student Movement (Bcsm). Speaking to AsiaNews about the challenges facing young people like him and also what he expects from the Synod of Bishops that will end on October 28th, he says, "the Church is attempting various types of training for young people. But I think it is necessary to give more attention to the young people themselves ". Regarding the ecclesiastical hierarchy, the student declares: "They must be transparent, welcoming, honest, communicative, joyful, interactive and accessible".

William comes from the diocese of Mymensingh. He says Bangladeshi youth "do not take part in political diatribes, do the right thing at the right time, do not think to harm the other. The young are adamant, they struggle. They want to change everything with virulence and they all do it together. They are creative and do not get involved in the dirty business of politics ".

The challenges that animate the new generations he says: "The greatest are the competition in the study and for the work, the frustrations and the sharing of the complexities of the world. The hard work of modern youth concerns above all the way in which discern what is right or wrong, setting priorities and remaining linked to the family and to the Church ".

The student also talks about the relationship between young people and the Church. For him, hierarchies "play a vital role in listening to young people. Throughout the year they organize seminars and programs, including assistance programs in Catholic mission schools and visits by priests to families. In this way the links between relatives are kept intact ".

According to William, it is necessary to make a distinction between the young people of the province and those who live in the cities: the former, "have greater success within the Church thanks to the guidance of families, the greater interactions with the Church built by living in hostels and studying in Catholic schools "; the latter, "are more organized and have greater success outside the Church, thanks to higher education, greater access to the media and technology, they are more individualistic".

The young man points out the good number of religious vocations, "merit" of the attention to the formation of priests and bishops who have studied abroad. Finally, he hopes that the Synod of Bishops can "lead to a revision and improvement of the educational system, so as to make the Church ready for the challenges of tomorrow". He concludes, "the church must always make its voice heard on critical issues and suggest the best alternatives to society".