Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor visits tsunami zones
The cardinal's trip marks the anniversary of the seaquake. He is meeting victims and leaders of other religions and is praying for the tough peace process.
Colombo (AsiaNews) The Catholic Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Connor is in Sri Lanka to visit tsunami-afflicted areas and to witness first-hand the relief and reconstruction projects under taken by the Catholic Church and other organizations. The Cardinal arrived on 26 December, the anniversary of the seaquake, accompanied by Chris Bain, director of the Catholic Agency of Overseas Development (CAFOD). CAFOD donated 4.8 million British pounds to the Sinhalese Church in Sri Lanka to press ahead with its relief projects for the stricken population irrespective of religion or nationality.
As soon as he arrived, Cardinal O'Connor went to Payagala with the Archbishop Mgr Oswald Gomis. Here they handed over the keys of nearly 820 new houses built with funds received through various donors. Together with the keys, they also handed out bibles to Catholics and statues of Buddha to Buddhists.
"I'm travelling to Sri Lanka to see how reconstruction efforts have progressed, to join the Church and people of Sri Lanka in marking the painful anniversary, and to hear the stories of those affected," said the Cardinal.
Yesterday he visited Ampara on the eastern coast where he met the bishop of Batticaloa, Mgr Kingsley Swampillai. This is one of the districts hardest hit by both the tsunami and the civil war. It is also the place where the work of CAFOD has been concentrated. O'Connor thanked the Catholic people of England and Wales for their generosity in donating to CAFOD's tsunami campaign. This year, CAFOD registered its highest budget ever. "The tsunami caused suffering across pacific Asia, and inspired an unprecedented level of compassion and generosity around the world," the Cardinal said.
Galle, Matara and Hambanthota are other areas Card. O'Connor will visit on 3 and 4 January. Reconstruction works are under way here, promoted by the Bishop of Galle, Mgr Harold Anthony Perera.
Problems linked to co-existence with other faiths and national peace, are also at the forefront of the cardinal's trip. On 28 December the cardinal had "fruitful discussions" with Buddhist monks (Buddhism is the majority religion in the country) and other religious representatives.
On 2 January, he is set to meet the new president of Sri Lanka, Mahinda Rajapakse, whose election triggered an escalation of violence in the country. The peace process between the Tamil Tiger rebels and the government has been stalled since 2003 although a cease-fire has been in place since 2002. In his address to the Vatican Nunciature, Cardinal O'Connor said: "My prayers are for this beautiful island, especially for the progress of the peace process.
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