Haiti: Aktuelle Nachrichten der Partner des internationalen Don Bosco Netzwerks

Jugend Eine Welt ist im ständigen Kontakt mit den Partnern des internationalen Don Bosco Netzwerks. Die ANS – Agenzia Info Salesiana, die Medien-Plattform der Salesianer Don Boscos, informiert regelmäßig über den aktuellen Stand der Dinge auf Haiti. Jugend Eine Welt steht selbstverständlich auch mit den Projektpartnern in der Dominikanischen Republik und New Rochelle (USA), von wo aus die Hilfsmaßnahmen koordiniert werden in ständigem Kontakt.

Nachrichten der letzten Tage:

Video: Generaloberer besucht Haiti

Sonntag, 28.02.2010

A letter from the Rector Major after his visit to Haiti

(ANS – Rome) – A few days after his visit to Haiti, Fr Pascual Chávez Villanueva has written a letter to the Salesians, to members of the Salesian Family and to all those close to Don Bosco.

After describing what was done when the tragic news was received of the earthquake, the  Rector Major explains the reasons for his visit  between 12 and 15 February: “I felt it necessary, important and of significance  to go personally to Haiti so that through the person of the Rector Major the closeness, the fraternity and the solidarity of the Congregation could be felt. I wanted to share at close hand in the suffering and the uncertainty in which the whole population is living.”

Visiting Port-au-Prince Fr Chávez was aware of the total lack of leadership and of how life “continues to go ahead, more  by dint of inertia and by the struggle for survival than for any social organisation which is supporting or stimulating it.” “I tried to hear the voice of God which like the blood of Abel cried out with the voices of the thousands of the dead buried in mass graves or still under the ruins. I tried to listen to God who was speaking through the dull sound of the thousands of people struggling to live under the tents,... I tried to open my ears and heart to the cry of God which could be heard in the anger and feelings of powerlessness…”

The letter is not a simple description  of  the situation, but contains an exhortation and suggestions for the re-birth of the country, and especially of the Salesian presence. “Therefore the challenge for today cannot be merely to reconstruct the walls of the buildings, of the houses and of the churches destroyed, but rather that of  making Haiti rise again, building it on living conditions which really are human, where rights, all rights, are for everyone and not the privilege of some.”

The fear, expressed several times, is that with the passing of time and the complicity of the mass media, Haiti will be forgotten, considered old news.

The efforts of the Salesian have been admirable as the opened their houses to welcome the displaced people  as at Thorland, Pétion-Ville, Delmas, Cité Soleil. Fr Chávez renews the commitment of the Sons of Don Bosco “to the rebirth of the country, re-founding, step by step together, the Congregation with the presences which are responding to the expectations and the needs of the  Haitian society,  of the Church and of the young” In this process the State and the local Church need to take part together with consecrated life “ seeking more and more its  identity, fidelity to the Lord Jesus, and his Gospel.”

The letter also contains some details of the decisions reached in agreement with the Council of the Vice Province  for  “the re-founding of the works, the revision of the pastoral approach in general, and in certain places, having always in mind,  in particular, the needs of society, of the Church and of the young.”

Rebuilding, re-locating, re-thinking Salesian presences and works in the short and in the long term so as to ensure greater significance and pastoral effectiveness, is, he says, the programme: “Looking at the present and to the future, what becomes the priority is to keep the schools and youth centres functioning where they are fit for use,    and in addition to build or re-build as soon as possible those works which have become unfit for use. The priority of the care and the education of the young is absolute, all the more so since what is at stake is the creation, through a new education, of a new culture, capable of building the new Haiti.”

In conclusion, the Rector Major thanks the Congregation, the Mission Offices, international organisations close to the Salesians, benefactors and friends of Salesian work inviting them “to  continue with the efforts we are making to respond to the immense demands of this country in so much  need.”

Published 28/02/2010

Dienstag, 23.02.2010

Dominican Republic – Working for Haiti, a volunteer speaks

(ANS – Barahona) – Manuel Rupérez, a young Spanish volunteer with ‘Jóvenes y Desarrollo’, working for 4 months in the Dominican Republic, offers his own personal experience in the context of the earthquake of 12 January which struck Haiti. A Past Pupil of the Salesian Institute in Atocha, the young man has been working in Barahona, in the Dominican Republic.
 
“Without any merit of my own, Providence saw to it that my work and my presence were of some use, given that now all eyes are turned to Haiti and we are living at close hand. I say it without boasting since I wasn’t directly involved nor am I working in that country. Certainly without doubt, being close geographically and the friendship between the Salesian community of Barahona and the Salesians in  Port-au-Prince enabled me to witness some events and some solutions.  

As a volunteer with ‘Jóvenes y Desarrollo’ I take part in the activities of the local NGO, the ‘Fundación Sur Joven’ which works for the youngsters in the poorest areas of Barahona. We try to encourage the youngsters to be involved socially and pastorally and help with their school work and professional training. I help the personnel to strengthen the formal structure of the organisation and I also help out as a leader in one of the three oratories in the parish.

In everyday work there are enormous difficulties in trying to achieve the objectives indicated in the project. Every day you have to avoid falling into paternalism and re-enforcing a dependence attitude. Everyday you have to encourage participation,  improve self-esteem and find the way to prevent a limited education and shortage of means being an obstacle to the all-round  development of the children and youngsters.
 
As regards our helping the people of Haiti, I should like to emphasise the great work the Dominican people are doing , which is given little recognition by the international media. The Antilles Province of Santo Domingo, and communities such as La Vega and Barahona, provide constant support for the Salesians in Port-au-Prince.

We have been to various collection points, we have been with the Provincial Delegations in their journeys to Haiti, and we have provided a place for other Salesians wanting to go to Haiti and to return,  to meet and to stay. For all this I am very happy  to be able to share the hard work and also the joys with the four Salesians who make up the Barahona community.
 
I think about the life I left behind a few months ago in Madrid. My experience as a volunteer in Barahona will have achieved the objectives we set with "Jóvenes y Desarrollo” if, in addition to its being an opportunity for personal growth, it also increases awareness in others around me, and helps give direction to my professional life – and even more –to my  vocation.

I conclude with a brief reflection which is also an invitation to the  hope  which here we feel very strongly. The re-construction of Port-au-Prince will take many years and I am aware that the Salesians in Spain will have a very important role. For many more years we have to maintain the  spirit of solidarity and commitment to the people of Haiti. This cannot be done through mere pity or with a sense of powerlessness. Real compassion, giving life to an effective solidarity needs to have hope as its objective, that which the Risen Lord embodied opening his arms to the world.”

Pubblicato il 23/02/2010

Freitag, 19.02.2010

Tears for Haiti

(ANS – Rome) – The Rector Major was very moved in recent days visiting  the city of Port-au-Prince. A short video, “Tears for Haiti,” on ANSchannel bears witness to it.

The pictures show his visit to the Salesian centre of’ “Ecole Nationale des Arts et Métiers” (ENAM). “Here there were two floors. Two floors reduced to nothing!” the Rector Major said in dismay in front of the ruins of one of the blocks which thanks to a couple of minutes did not trap another hundred youngsters who had just left it for the recreation.

Among the ruins which the Italian Civil Defence service are working to remove, Fr Chávez stopped where there are still bodies underneath. “This was another part of the school which had three floors. Look what  it is reduced to! It’s here that there are 150 bodies of our pupils, of our students, of our teachers. They have the right to be afforded dignity for their lives and also for their deaths.”

The streets of Port-au-Prince show just how much damage the earthquake caused. The National Palace, residence of the President of the Republic, collapsed in on itself.

Seating on the ruins of the cathedral, Fr Chávez said: “I pray and hope that this will be an opportunity for the re-birth of the country! Re-founding too our Salesian presence and collaborating in the building of  a world which can give more hope and a better future to this country. I don’t hide my emotion, I’m upset, … after seeing up close, knowing how many bodies are still under the ruins … I can only be silent!”

The video also shows the reception being provided by the Salesians at Drouillard and, above all at Carrefour-Thorland. Here, in collaboration with the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and the Mexican Civil Protection services, over 12,000  homeless people are staying.

Accompanying the Rector Major on his journey to Haiti between 13 and 15 February were the Director of ANS, Fr Donato Lacedonio, and two of the staff from Missioni Don Bosco Media Centre in Turin, Mr. Stefano Bianco, executive producer, and Antonio Saglia, a Salesian Brother. This decision was based on the desire to communicate  information which was more  precise, complete and effective. A DVD is already in preparation with the reports of the Salesians rescued from the ruins and the account of the Rector Major’s visit.

Published 19/02/2010

Donnerstag, 18.02.2010

Merci, Père Chavez

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – The visit of the Rector Major to Haiti has left its mark in the hearts of the Salesians, and sown seeds of hope. Not only because of the words of encouragement so often expressed in various circumstances – “Haiti must rise again” – but also because of his presence among the people, his visits to all the centres hit by the earthquake, the meetings held with the Council of the Vice Province, with  the authorities in Port-au-Prince and with the relief workers.

The Salesians of Haiti have expressed their own thanks in various ways. Fr Ducange Sylvain, the new Superior of the Vice Province of Haiti, said so in  the name of everyone during his short address at the end of the visit.

The dedication written by the Salesians of Haiti in the book of photographs “Haiti, the face of a country”  they have given to the Rector Major is significant. In it, referring to the date of the earthquake and of the visit of Fr Chávez, exactly a month later, they express their gratitude:

12 January 2010.
In a few seconds a terrifying earthquake put us on our knees. Apocalyptic catastrophe. Ruins. Deaths. Cries. Weeping. Dismay. Desolation. Silence. Rebellion. Darkness. Trauma. Misery. Desperation. Hands stretched out to each other. Hands stretched out to the Lord. “I have seen. I have heard. I understand. I have come down … Go, set my people free” (Exodus, 3, 7-8)

12 February 2010.

Fr Pascual like the Lord, you saw and understood. THANK YOU for having understood at once. In the letter to all the Salesians, which with your father’s heart you sent us. Awareness. Response. Solidarity. Fraternity…
Fr Chávez, before the Lord we say in confidence that the message which pleases us the most is “the open letter of yourself.” What a father’s heart! What sensitivity! Thank you father for not sending us a Moses. Thank you for coming yourself. Thank you for following in the steps of Jesus and the heart of Don Bosco. For sharing with us, from the suffering for our dead and dispersed to the struggle for life taken up again, from our ruins to the re-foundation starting from personal and community  conversion.
Fr Pascual, thank you, thank you.!

Published 18/02/2010

Dienstag, 16.02.2010

Final stage on a journey inspired by hope

(ANS – Pétion-Ville) – The final day of the Rector Major’s visit to the “Blessed Philip Rinaldi” Vice Province of Haiti was entirely dedicated to the Salesians. His meeting with the Council of the Vice Province, Mass and giving some special tasks were the highlights.

This final day began with a short visit to the Salesian Primary School next to the Pétion-Ville house. In the courtyards of this centre, where only the outer stair-case was damaged by the earthquake there are 200 families in tents.

This was followed by a meeting with the Council. The Rector Major gave the local Superior  Fr Sylvain Ducange, the task of putting into action the priority mentioned the previous days in the meeting with the Salesian Family: education. After ascertaining the situation of the centres affected by the earthquake, a plan was drawn up which would take account of the work to be done and the re-location necessary.

Afterwards a short but significant meeting was held with the person responsible for the Italian Civil Defence group in Haiti, Luigi D’Angelo. The time required and the methods to be used in making the ENAM operational were considered so that the phases of re-organisation and re-construction can be started

Drawing on the readings of the liturgy of the day the Rector Major told the Salesians in Haiti gathered together at Pétion-Ville, in the course of simple and well-attended Mass not to follow the example of the Pharisees who asked Jesus for a sign of the presence of God. “There are already signs of His presence!” Suffering and death become clearer in the sign of the cross. “I can already see signs of something new! The signs of solidarity that have been seen in the Congregation and around it are the expression of something which is alive, which suffers and shares totally! You are not alone!” As evidence of this Fr Chávez mentioned the small contributions and the results of collections which had been made for Haiti in some of the poorest houses in the  Congregation.

He asked the Salesians of Haiti to be the antennae of history  capable of picking up the needs and the problems of people and of society; the heralds of the dawn who know how to wait for and to assist in the birth of a new era for the country and God’s prophets proclaiming His Word.
During the Mass special prayers were said for the Salesians, the youngsters and all those who died under the ruins.

Later in the morning the  Rector Major phoned his Vicar,  Fr Adriano Bregolin, who was holding a meeting with a group of business men in the city of Pavia who were ready to become involved in some projects being proposed. During the short link-up the Rector Major described what he had seen during his visit and the urgent humanitarian needs of the people of Haiti.

Before leaving Pétion-Ville, the Rector Major informed the Salesians of the practical decisions which in agreement with the Council  of the Vice Province had been taken that morning. Special thanks were offered to those centres which had welcomed the displaced people. Thought needed to be given about re-locating some of them but education remained the priority. ENAM was to be reordered and needed to have a Youth Centre so that it might be “a social lung at the service of the whole area of  Cité Soleil and offer a broader sort of education.”

Fr Chávez repeated that the real difficulty lay not in re-building collapsed walls “but in changing the mentality of the Haitian people. Salesians are educators. It is up to you to cooperate in this change.” “It is time to roll our sleeves up!” the Rector Major concluded.

The thanks of the Superior of the Vice Province Fr Sylvain Ducange were heartfelt and moving, “Thank you for your presence, for your words, for your encouragement,” thanks which were also offered to all the members of the Council and to all the Salesians of the Congregation.

Published 16/02/2010

Montag, 15.02.2010

“We are here to celebrate life”

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – Yesterday 14 February the Rector Major spent most of his time on the third day of his visit to the country and city so severely tried, even more recently following the earthquake of 12 January with the Salesian Family in Haiti

“We are here to celebrate life not death!” was the exhortation with which Fr Chávez introduced his homily for the VI Sunday of the Year. The “Saint John Bosco” church in Pétion-Ville, was crowded inside and out by people. Commenting on the readings of the Liturgy, the Rector Major reminded the members of the Salesian Family that Christ is Risen, and that from death comes new life. The person who trusts in God also knows that even a terrible tragedy like the earthquake a month ago cannot say the last word! “Haiti must rise again,“ –Fr Chávez insisted –“with the help of everyone.”

There was then a celebration on the courtyard next to the church enlivened by some  items provided by the Pétion-Ville youth group. “This is the most  important meeting in my life,” the Rector Major said speaking to the representatives  of the groups of the Salesian Family – “I am asking you to make a direct contribution to the re-birth of  Haiti!” The obvious priority is education, above all schools. “With a sound education it is possible to prevent many young people, without any terms of reference to fall the victims of evil and of   criminal organisations. If we don’t get in there immediately, these youngsters, instead of being the great  asset for a new Haiti, will become a problem!” The second step forward indicated by the IX successor of Don Bosco is Youth Ministry: “We must reorganise and improve it in everything it has to offer, especially in the area of evangelisation.”

Thus there are three things for the Salesian Family in Haiti  to concentrate on, according to Fr Chávez: having confidence in the young, in education and in the Preventive System. “We have to change this tragedy into an opportunity for redemption, for resurrection!”

Echoing the words of the Rector Major, Archbishop Louis Kébreau SDB archbishop of Cap-Haitien and President of the Bishops’ Conference of Haiti, thanked the successor of Don Bosco for his message and words of encouragement. The emergency in Haiti is not yet over! There is the risk that the silence of the local  authorities and of international interests will leave this part of the Caribbean in a state of  poverty and of dependence greater than that before  12 January!

Early in the afternoon Fr Chávez went to the Provincial House of the  Daughters of Mary Help of Christians; he was welcomed by the Provincial, Sr. Marie Claire Jean, a good number of Sisters and orphan girls who live in the house. After watching some dances performed by the smallest and the older ones and receiving a picture as a gift, the Rector Major gave the smaller ones the recipe for happiness: having confidence in themselves, in the loving education they are receiving from the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and having Jesus and Mary as their friends.

Speaking to the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, Fr Chávez repeated the exhortation he had given in the morning: “we have to role up our sleeves and do something at once in the area of education!” He also gave the Sisters three tasks: “to believe in what we are, religious called by God; to believe in what we are doing in our work of education; and to believe in the Preventive System!”

The afternoon ended with a meeting with the Nuncio Apostolic in Haiti, Archbishop Auza Bernadito. Admiring the panorama of the city of Port-au-Prince which can be seen from the Nunciature, Archbishop Bernadito recalled the tragic moments of the earthquake. “You could see a large orange cloud which then became grey as you could guess the extent of the calamity!” Speaking about the situation of the local church after the earthquake, the Nuncio mentioned some incidents of the survival but also sadly of the death of some people active in the  public, religious and ordinary life of the city.

For the Haitian church too the priority is education. The Rector Major, finding himself in this situation, assured the renewed commitment which the Salesians wished to make to the re-birth and the resurrection of the people of Haiti. A commitment which would certainly lead them to collaborate with all the ecclesiastical organisations.

 Another day of joys and sorrows mixed together. A day in which the bulldozers of the Italian Civil Defence services continued to dig through the ruins of the ENAM searching for the bodies of 150 pupils.

Published 15/02/2010

Sonntag, 14.02.2010

The call of the Rector Major rings out: Haiti must be rise again

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – More places visited, so many Salesians, youngsters and people met. Dismay and sorrow once again on this second day of the Rector Major’s visit to Haiti, but his strong message is always one of encouragement and hope.

Accompanied by Fr Sylvain Ducange, the  new Superior of the Vice Province of Haiti, and his predecessor, Fr Charles Jacques, Fr Chávez went to Cap-Haitien, and from there to Fort Liberté where he paid a visit to the Salesian centre, a vocational training school, now the only one in Haiti to have a nurses’ training course; the other was destroyed by the earthquake burying all those on the course.

He said Mass here with the representatives of the Salesian Family. Having returned to Cap-Haitien he went to the “Don Bosco” Agricultural School and chatted with the youngsters. He told them that acquiring the necessary professional skills in life “changes the desert into a wood.”

These places were not affected by the earthquake of 12 January, and the Salesian centres have been preserved as they were.
In the early afternoon having returned again to Port-au-Prince, the Rector Major visited the Gressier vocational training school, 70 km from the city and seriously damaged in the earthquake. After a structural examination it was seen that it would all have to be knocked down and rebuilt.

In Thorland, a suburb of Port-au-Prince, 12 km from the capital Fr Chávez  visited the site of the pre-novitiate. Here two walls of the large sports-hall have come down, and a three-storey block used as the youth centre has collapsed in on itself. As the centres of the Salesians and of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians were next to each other they have made their fields and courtyards available for the homeless. Thanks to the Mexican Civil Defence  services and the collaboration of the Salesians and the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, a reception centre and camp for 12,000 people is now operating in Thorland.

Under an  improvised tent the Rector Major met the young people and their families. The meeting was marked by joy and sadness intermingled. Visibly moved, as at Gressier he encouraged everyone to work together to make Haiti rise again. Once again his call was, “Haiti must rise again.” Turning to the Salesians and the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians he said: “I am very proud of you for all that you are doing so readily to help these people.”

Published 14/02/2010

Samstag, 13.02.2010

Haiti – 30 days later

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – Haiti remembers the terrible earthquake which on 12 January changed the face of a city and took over 212,000 lives.

Yesterday  12 February, 30 days after the earthquake was observed as a day of mourning, of fasting and prayer for the victims. It was promoted by the Government and supported by various religious and civic bodies. Life in the devastated city came to a stand-still. Even the local markets set up after the quake and with very few provisions were deserted.

People dressed in white congregated near the churches which were unfit to enter. A Mass was celebrated in the square near the devastated Cathedral. Hymns and prayers filled the streets and in some places drowned out all other city noises. At the end, with great dignity, the people who were fortunate still to have one went home, others returned to their tents, if they had been lucky enough to get one, or in the poorer districts to the remaining hovels.

From above Port-au-Prince seems a city like so many others. Closer to the ground one begins to make out the grey piles of rubble and the multi-coloured official tent-sites  or those improvised with any kind of material available.

The removal of the rubble is still progressing, and will certainly require much more time. The ruins of houses, Government buildings, monuments all seem to tell their own story of suffering, sorrow and the agony of those who have found death under them, or have lost loved ones because of them or have seen destroyed with them what little they had. Countless the stories of those who by chance, coincidence or good fortune died or survived.

A large city, a huge tragedy, an impressive rescue and relief operation which, in spite of the commitment and non-stop work of those engaged, still does not seem to have reaches all the corners of Port-au-Price. A  country which seemed not to notice the recent great economic crisis … only because it had been living with it for years!

Haiti ought to be at the heart of the world for a long time! Perhaps the other countries, especially those in the developed west, should stop every “12” of the month to remember this people.

Published 13/02/2010

Giving hope and a future

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – Joy and sorrow,  dismay and hope marked the first day of the visit of Fr Pascual Chávez to Haiti. Speaking to the youngsters and the Salesians he said “Our purpose is, first of all, to give hope to Haiti.”

The Rector Major had arrived in the evening of 11 February at the airport in Santo Domingo. He was welcomed by the Provincial of the Dominican Republic, Fr Vichtor Pichardo who yesterday morning 12 February accompanied the Rector Major to the capital of Haiti in a helicopter. Having arrived at Port-au-Prince, 30 days after the earthquake which devastated the heart of the capital, the IX successor of Don Bosco saw from above the vast areas of devastation.

The helicopter landed in the grounds of the Embassy of the Dominican Republic, which had also been made unfit for use by the earthquake. With the new Superior, Fr  Sylvain Ducange, and his predecessor, Fr Charles Jacques, as well as the Provincial of the Sisters in  Haiti, Sr. Marie Claire Jean, there was also the Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to Haiti who introduced himself as a Salesian Past Pupil.

The first stop was at Pétion Ville. Here the youngsters welcomed Fr Chávez with joyful songs and a traditional dance. “As sons of Don Bosco, cheerfulness is our attitude, and we are moved by a spirit of optimism as we believe in the re-birth of Haitian people and in the re-founding of the Salesian charism in our country,” Fr Ducange said in his welcoming address. In his reply the Rector Major once again expressed how he himself and the whole Congregation were close to them, full of hope: “Before thinking of re-building the walls it is necessary to give hope to the people and to the young.”

He then visited the Salesian places most affected by the earthquake, both regarding the buildings and with the loss of life: the “Ecole Nationale des Arts et Métiers” (ENAM). Accompanying the group was Fr Mark Hyde, from the New Rochelle Missions Office, who had already been in Haiti for several days coordinating relief efforts. Visiting the various halls of the Institute and noting the damage and destruction, the Rector Major stopped for a few moments of silent prayer at the place where 12 Salesian pupils were buried.

Much greater and much deeper his emotion in front of the piles of rubble which still cover the bodies of about 150 youngsters. The silence in the courtyard filled with rubble made more heart-rending the exclamation: “How is it possible! Young people just starting out on life!” The Rector Major spoke to the Italian civil defence and fire service workers who are removing the debris of the Enam, stressing the significance of the place and the sacred character it tragically now has.

However, life has not stopped in the ENAM. The youngsters and the staff of the “Lakai” welcomed Fr Chávez in a short ceremony with songs and an  address. “Now we must look to the future; it is up to you to give hope to Haiti,” the Rector Major told them. At the end, the youngsters of the “Lakai” gave Fr Chávez an oil painting.

Here too the Rector Major met an Italian delegation led by Naval Captain Gianluigi Reversi, Commander of the aircraft carrier “Cavour” from the Italian contingent in Haiti. “We wanted to work with the Salesians because we have seen, also here, their commitment to the young and to the poor,” the spokesman of the press office of the group said.

The Salesian parish of Cité Soleil, rendered unfit for use by the earthquake, the reception camps set up at Drouillard, the headquarters of the Vice Province were visited next. In spite of the pain in seeing how deep the wounds suffered by the Salesian centres, Fr Chávez never failed to bring hope and a spirit of optimism.

“We are very pleased with the visit of the Rector Major and we are conscious of the closeness of the whole Congregation. This encourages us to go ahead and to overcome all the difficulties!” often repeated Fr Ducange, who on 30 January was installed as the new Superior of the Vice Province of Haiti.

Early in the afternoon Fr Chávez walked through the streets to see the places in the city most affected. Looking at the ruins of the Cathedral he said to those with him: “God is walking through these streets telling us that he is on the side of those who are suffering, those still under the rubble, those who have seen reduced to dust the little they had managed to achieve in their whole lives.”

The last stop on the first day was Fleuriot, the postnovitiate house of formation for various religious orders present in Haiti, rendered completely out of action. “We must rebuild for the formation of our Salesians and in order to continue to offer this service of formation to the local church”, were the words of encouragement and the proposal of the Rector Major.

At the end of the day he had a meeting with the Council of the Vice Province which had already begun to look to the future.

Published 13/02/2010

Dienstag, 09.02.2010

Security a Priority

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – The security of the schools of the Salesians in Port-au-Prince is urgent. This means that the  reconstruction of the security walls needs to be carried out as soon as possible so that the Salesians of Don Bosco can start up teaching programmes again.

The bakery and the kitchen equipment of the Father Bohnen Mini-Schools suffered some damage by the earthquake which hit Haiti on 12 January. The main kitchen survived, but with the collapse of the boundary wall, gas cylinders, the stoves, pots, cutlery, cooking utensils, plates and food stocks were stolen.
 
Without the kitchen and an adequate boundary wall the Salesians cannot start school programmes. Temporary class-rooms, even furnished with the minimum equipment are  in danger of being looted. Therefore the rebuilding of the boundary wall is  fundamental.

Large tents capable of holding 40 people are needed as temporary class-rooms. The New Rochelle Salesian Missions Office is working on acquiring and air-lifting them from Santo Domingo to Haiti.

The Civil Protection Dept. of the government of Malta has offered 10 tons of 1.5 liter bottles of mineral water, 12 tons of preserved food (tuna, beans, corned beef, etc.), and possibly some blankets.  Logistics are being arranged to help those who have lost everything.

The visit of the Rector Major Fr Pascual Chávez is eagerly awaited. He is due to arrive at Santo Domingo on 11 February and will be in Port-au-Prince between 12 and 15.

Published 09/02/2010

Freitag, 29.01.2010

Everyone for Haiti

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – Thanks to a change in the law in the United States regarding tax returns the Salesian NGO, International NGO, various organisations, religious communities and individuals  can do even more for trhe noble cause: helping the inhabitants of Haiti who have lost everything in the 12 January earthquake.

On 22 January the President of the United States, Barack Obama, made a change to the law regarding tax returns for their charitable contributions. This means that people who have donated to charities providing relief to Haitians since the Jan. 12 earthquake can take a tax deduction for the contribution on their 2009 tax return instead of their 2010 return.

A five-truck convoy arrived on Jan. 26 in Port-au-Prince from La Vega for distribution in Pétion-Ville and Carrefour-Thorland.  Commodities included food stuffs (2 trucks), potable water (2 trucks), and medications and clothing (1).  All relief items were purchased in the Dominican Republic.
The 300,000 chlorine tablets reported on earlier were delivered in Port-au-Prince on evening of Jan. 25.
 
The drinking water unit – AquaCube – (acquired through BEGECA) arrived in Santo Domingo and is being trucked to Port-au-Prince with logistical support and transport provided by the UN.  Fr. Jacques Charles, outgoing Haitian SDB provincial, will pick up the drinking water plant from a warehouse contiguous to the German embassy in Port-au-Prince on Jan. 27.
BEGECA’s representative in Santo Domingo, Gunter Timmermanns, will be working out of the SDB Antilles provincial house and is coordinating SDBs UN-led logistical support.      
Jugend Eine Welt (Austrian Salesian NGO) in partnership with CARITAS Austria is seeking funds from the EU for a 6-month project aimed at providing emergency support for 20,000 youths associated with the “mini schools” at Cité Soleil and La Saline.
Parents and children of a European School in Bergen near Amsterdam, are raising funds to help the SDBs of Haiti rebuild some of the mini schools.
The SDBs of Haiti have requested 2,000 tents with capacity of 6 people each.  Salesian Missions is making arrangements to procure and meet this urgent need.

Published 29/01/2010

Mittwoch, 27.01.2010

Haiti: „Wir müssen Staat und Gesellschaft verändern, wenn wir das Chaos überwinden wollen“

Immer noch ist nicht klar, wie viele Todesopfer in den Don Bosco Einrichtungen zu beklagen sind. Die genaue Zahl wird sich wohl nie ermitteln lassen. Man gehe weiter von 500 Opfern, zum Großteil Kinder zwischen fünf und siebzehn Jahren, aus. Viele von ihnen sind Straßenkinder, die sich zum Zeitpunkt des Bebens im Zentrum aufgehalten haben. Da die Arbeit mit Straßenkindern nach dem Prinzip der „offenen Tür“ funktioniere, ist deren Anzahl nicht genau zu bestimmen. „Straßenkinder haben keine Angehörigen, die sich nach ihnen erkundigen oder sie vermissen,“ so Reinhard Heiserer, Geschäftsführer von Jugend Eine Welt. „Wir rechnen mit einem enormen Anstieg der Straßenkinderzahlen. Es wird dringend notwendig sein, ihnen so schnell wie möglich wieder einen Schlafplatz, Bildung, menschliche Zuwendung und eine Zukunftsperspektive bieten zu können.“ so Heiserer. Vor dem Beben hatten sich die Patres in den Einrichtungen „Lakay“ und „Lakou“ vornehmlich um diese Zielgruppe gekümmert.   

Neunzehn Don Bosco Mitarbeiter und Angestellte der „kleinen Schulen“ wurden bei dem Beben getötet. Die kleinen Schulen waren eine erfolgreiche Alphabetisierungsaktion in den Slums der Hauptstadt. An 54 Standorten wurde mit Hilfe von Müttern und Anwohnern dezentraler Schulunterricht abgehalten. Oftmals gab es noch nicht einmal ein Klassenzimmer, der Unterricht fand auf dem Bürgersteig statt. Jedes Kind wurde darüber hinaus mit einem Mittagessen versorgt.

Man wolle an diesem Prinzip festhalten und die kleinen Schulen möglichst schnell wieder aufbauen. Seit wenigen Tagen steht darüber hinaus fest, dass auch die Kirche und das Pfarrzentrum der Jugend Eine Welt Partner, der Salesianer Don Boscos, zusammengebrochen sind.  

In den Einrichtungen der Salesianer, besonders in Thorland und Carrefour, werden zur Zeit 3500 Flüchtlinge versorgt. Aus Angst vor herabstürzenden Trümmern schlafen selbst die Menschen, deren Häuser zum Teil noch stehen, auf der Straße und in PKWs.  

Weitere LKWs mit Hilfsgütern wurden in Begleitung des Dominikanischen Militärs in beiden Zentren entladen. Die LKWs hatten Reis, Bohnen, Trockenfisch, Kleidung und Trinkwasser in der Dominikanischen Republik im Nothilfe- und Logistikzentrum der Salesianer in Baharona eingeladen und in die 130 km entfernten Notstandsgebiete gebracht. Alle diese Aktivitäten werden mit der Caritas, dem Roten Kreuz und den Vereinten Nationen koordiniert.  

Währenddessen bemühen sich die Salesianer mitten im Chaos um die Wiederherstellung der Normalität- durch Schulunterricht. Ein Problem sei jedoch, dass viele Lehrer durch das Beben getötet oder verletzt worden seien, oder die Stadt verlassen hätten. Man brauche dringend Geld für die Gehälter der Lehrer, um den Schulunterricht anhalten zu können.   

Salesianerpater Zucchi, zeichnete trotz der weltweiten Solidarität und den Bemühungen vor Ort ein pessimistisches Bild der Lage. Wenn es nicht gelänge, den organisierten Verbrecherbanden den Boden zu entziehen, bleibt das Land in seiner Armut gefangen. Nur wenn sich die Gesellschaft und vor allem die politischen Eliten ändern, habe Haiti die Chance auf eine bessere Zukunft.

Die Salesianer versuchen dies, vor allem mit ihrer an christlichen und humanitären Werten ausgerichteten Erziehung, zu erreichen.

Dienstag, 26.01.2010

Haiti - Die Zukunft der Kinder ist zerstört

(Port-au-Prince)  - Vor dem Erdbeben unterrichteten die Salesianer Don Boscos in Port-au-Prince in zwei riesigen Bildungseinrichtungen "La Saline" und "Cité Soleil" in den Slums rund 20.000 Kinder der Ärmsten der Armen. „Für die Kleinsten gab es Kindergruppen, danach eine Grund- und Hauptschulausbildung sowie Lehrwerkstätten auf dem Gelände“ berichtet P. Olibrice Zucchi SDB, der Leiter des Schulzentrums.

La Saline mit fünf großen Schulen liegt heute darnieder - die meisten Gebäude sind völlig eingestürzt, einige stehen noch teilweise, aber sind vollkommen kaputt, das einzige Gebäude, das noch funktionsfähig ist, ist die hauseigene Bäckerei. In der Bäckerei wurde vor dem Erdbeben für die Kleinsten zwischen drei und sechs Jahren täglich Brot gebacken, das sie gemeinsam mit einer Portion Milch zum Frühstück bekommen haben.

Alles ausgeraubt und gestohlen
Auch das Gebäude der Kantine, in der alle Kinder täglich ein warmes Mittagessen bekommen haben, wäre vielleicht noch zu retten - doch es gibt keinerlei Inventar mehr. Diebesbanden haben dem verzweifelten Pater Zucchi noch das Letzte geraubt, das nicht das Beben bereits vernichtet hat: die Kochgeräte, die Maschinen aus den Werkstätten, sogar Räder und Motoren der Fahrzeuge, mit denen früher Essen und Material angeliefert wurde. Übrig geblieben sind nur zerrissene Bücher, ein paar kaputte Schulbänke und die ausgehöhlten Autos.

Das große Schulprojekt, das bereits seit 1954 existiert und in dem Elendsviertel die einzige Zukunftschance für viele Kinder war, liegt in Trümmern. Und das Schlimmste ist, dass das Beben mehr als 250 Menschen vom Schulgelände mit in den Tod gerissen hat – unter ihnen 150 KindergärtnerInnen und VorschullehrerInnen, die sich gerade zu ihrer Nachmittagsbesprechung zusammen gefunden hatten. Pater Zucchi selbst konnte sich nach dem Beben gerade noch aus seinem Büro retten, seine Wohnung ist ebenfalls völlig zerstört und er schläft in einem kleinen Campingzelt neben den Schulgebäuden.

Die Kinder sollen wieder in die Schule gehen können
„Am dringendsten benötigen wir jetzt Hilfe, um die LehrerInnen, die das Beben überlebt haben, nicht auch noch zu verlieren. Momentan kann ich sie nicht zahlen und ihnen keine Unterstützung oder Arbeit bieten“ sagt P. Zucchi. Es gibt am Schulgelände einen großen, ebenen Platz, auf dem man in Zelten den Unterricht mit weniger Kindern wieder beginnen könnte. Der Pater selbst steht auch noch völlig unter Schock des Erdbebens, dem Verlust seiner MitarbeiterInnen und der Gebäude. „Wir werden ihn für einen Neubeginn mit allem unterstützen was in unserer Möglichkeit liegt“ meint Reinhard Heiserer, Geschäftsführer von Jugend Eine Welt. Pater Zucchi ist ein langjähriger Projektpartner von uns. Durch die Kooperation zwischen Jugend Eine Welt und Caritas wird das Schulprojekt so rasch als möglich wieder mehr als 20.000 Kindern Unterricht bieten.

Port-au-Prince, 26.1.2010 

Samstag, 23.01.2010

Haiti – Efforts to create synergy are continuing

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – Yesterday 22 January, in Port-au-Prince a meeting was held of the Provincial Councils of the Salesians and of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians  with Fr Mark Hyde from the New Rochelle Missions Office. The aim of the meeting was to make quick decisions about the priorities of the work to be done, the coordination of relief supplies and the re-construction of Salesian works.

In a communiqué the International Voluntary Movement for Development (VIS) have announced its economical and technical support for a plant make drinking water from sea water, which can produce 7,000 litres a day. The support being offered includes a permanent satellite connection with internet, through the Signis provider.
 
The Crisis Team at the New Rochelle Salesian Missions Office has received confirmation from the  “Cross International” organisation that the first three containers of food and first aid materials are ready for despatch. The go-ahead from the port authorities for the delivery has still to arrive.

According to a UNO report, a United Nations General Coordination Centre  has been set up at Barahona, while Jimani, a small centre of population on the frontier between  Haiti and the Dominican Republic, 65% destroyed, is clearly becoming the central key distribution link for relief supplies. It should be emphasised that the distribution of food to families who have lost everything remains the priority.

The initiatives in Salesian centres continue to multiply to make aware of and to get involved in the emergency situation created by the earthquake in Haiti,  pupils, youngsters, young people and their families.

Fr Mark Hyde will be staying on in Santo Domingo, so as to be able to meet representatives of the United Nations and in this way coordinate local activities and to obtain transport facilities to be used in the first aid efforts of the Salesians. Among all his engagements he has also been able to visit  Fr Attlio Stra, still in hospital in Santo Domingo.

Published 23/01/2010

Freitag, 22.01.2010

22/1/2010 - Haiti – New efforts and new hope

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – Even though Haiti continues to experience after-shocks resulting in the collapse of more buildings and fresh fear among the survivors, the pace of the relief work and its coordination necessarily continues methodically.

Today, 22 January, at 10.00 in the morning local time, in Port-au-Prince there will be a meeting of the Councils of the Salesians and the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians with Fr Mark Hyde, from the New Rochelle Missions Office. For safety reasons the meeting is taking place outside the Provincial House buildings, “under a tree,” and then at the end of the meeting there will be a visit to the places destroyed by the quake.

The “Cross International” organisation from the Unites States has repeated its readiness to send in the next 2 or 3 days a boat-load of food and first aid equipment; it will call in at the Dominican Republic and from there go to Haiti.

To respond to the emergency situation, an active relief centre will be set up in Santo Domingo. The  NGO “Jóvenes y Desarrollo” and  VIS will also be making their contribution.

All the gifts of food and other material collected are always transported by road from Barahona to Jimaní, on the frontier between the two countries, where at present the Salesians are looking for a place from which to distribute aid to families.

The Salesians in Thorland have confirmed that on their premises they are looking after 3,000 refugees who have lost everything and in their desperation have asked for help from the Salesian house. The primary and most urgent need is food.

The New Rochelle  Salesian Missions Office have held discussions with the “Visionlink, Inc.” company, in attempt to set up a database for first aid. The Company has set up a network of communications with “Cross International” other organisations engaged in the relief effort and more than 200 pharmaceutical companies.

From tomorrow the Council of the Vice Province will start work to establish a set of priorities for the future re-organisation of its activities. Various offers of solidarity for the re-construction have come from the Government of Castiglia and Leon (through “Jóvenes y Desarrolo”), from Misereor/City of Aachen (through the Salesian Missions in Bonn), from the Ministry for Economic Cooperation in Germany and from the Rector Major of the Salesians.
 
Published 22/01/2010

Donnerstag, 21.01.2010

Haiti: Bewaffnete Banden entwenden Lebensmittel

Mehrere Nachbeben haben die haitianische Bevölkerung in Port-au-Prince in Angst und Schrecken versetzt. Ungeachtet dessen, zeigen die Hilfsbemühungen der internationalen Gemeinschaft erste Erfolge. Die Sicherheitslage ist aber weiterhin katastrophal und erschwert die Maßnahmen. Während einer Besprechung der Salesianer Don Boscos, die sich mit 100 Freiwilligen und Jugendlichen über nächste Aufräumarbeiten unterhielten, stürmte eine Gruppe Bewaffneter den Hof und entwendete alle verfügbaren Lebensmittel. Die Versammelten hatten keine Chance die Güter zu verteidigen. Weiter berichten die Salesianer, dass organisierte bewaffnete Truppen in den Slums Jagd auf Wellblech machen. „Wir müssen sie gewähren lassen. Eine Verteidigung ist angesichts der Brutalität der Plünderer aussichtslos.“, so Salesianerpater Zucchi und fügt hinzu:  „Die Menschen hier sind nicht mehr ansprechbar, sie laufen durch die Straßen wie Roboter.“ Wellblech dient den Menschen in ihren einfachen Behausungen als Dach.

Gemeinsam mit den Kindern und Jugendlichen verbringen die Salesianer, die Tage und Nächte unter freiem Himmel. „Neben den Überlebenden aus unseren Einrichtungen, tragen wir nun die Verantwortung für weitere 650 neue Straßenkinder, die täglich zu uns kommen. Hier sind noch keine Hilfslieferungen angekommen. Wir versuchen jeden Tag Lebensmittel einzukaufen oder zu erbetteln, “ so Pater Lephene, Leiter der Don Bosco Straßenkinderzentren in Port-au-Prince. In den Höfen zweier weiterer Don Bosco Zentren in Petion-Ville und Fleuriot haben inzwischen 3500 Menschen in Zelten Zuflucht gefunden. Hier ist auch der Hilfskonvoi der Salesianer Don Bosco, bestehend aus 11 Fahrzeugen, angekommen. Bei der Verteilung der Güter – Wasser, Lebensmittel, Medikamente, kam es zu keinen kriminellen Vorfällen. Die Verteilung war aus Sicherheitsgründen dort erfolgt.

Trotz der katastrophalen Lage hat der Unterricht wieder begonnen. Jeden Nachmittag unterrichten die Salesianer und ihre Mitarbeiter in den Trümmern des Straßenkinderzentrums Lakou. „Es ist wichtig, dass es weitergeht. Wir müssen den jungen Leuten Mut geben. Das gibt ihnen wieder eine Perspektive, “ so P. Lephene. Viele Leichen der ca. 500 verschütteten Kinder und Mitarbeiter konnten inzwischen geborgen und begraben werden. 

 „Angst und Verzweiflung hat uns in den letzten Tagen fest im Griff gehabt, aber wir haben unser Lächeln nicht verlernt. Auch das wollen wir den Leuten mitgeben.“, so Pater Lephene.

Mittwoch, 20.01.10

Dienstag, 19.01.2010

19/1/2010 - RMG – Heartfelt appeal for solidarity by the Rector Major

(ANS – Rome) – In a personal letter addressed to all the Salesians in the world, the Rector Major Fr Pascual Chávez makes “a heartfelt and at the same time a very strong appeal for solidarity by the Salesian Congregation” for the “Blessed Philip Rinaldi” Vice Province of Haiti.

“Just as in a family everyone gathers around a sick child, so, moved by great “‘com-passion’ we want to share the burden of this extraordinary emergency and help in a very practical way this small Vice Province so sorely tried.”

Recalling how for Salesians the greatest loss has been that of the lives of so many young people, youngsters and children as well as three confreres, Fr Chávez gives an account of the state of the Salesian houses.

“Our Confreres in Haiti have been sorely tried but without doubt they are turning to us. They are asking for help and support so that Don Bosco may be able to continue his work in this country and may give them a sign of hope as they continue along their path as Salesians. For days they have been living out in the open with thousands of other people.”

The Rector Major expresses deep admiration for the Province of Santo Domingo which “has been a “good neighbour” and quickly sent food and first aid” and for the fact that the “poorest Provinces (of Africa,  Asia and America) were those which have responded most promptly and spontaneously.”

“In the name of Don Bosco,” Fr Chávez concludes, “I can assure you that the Lord will bless this act of charity of yours.” Through the Offices of the Direzione Generale Don Bosco in Rome, Salesians are invited to contribute to the relief work and to the reconstruction of the centres in Haiti: “Be generous therefore, even at the cost of having to “delay” some of your own particular projects!”

Published 19/01/2010

19/1/2010 - Haiti – First responses to the emergency

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – On 17 January the Council of the “Blessed Philip Rinaldi” Vice Province of Haiti held a meeting for a first  assessment of the situation and to make some decisions for the immediate future.

The  Council including  Fr Jaques Charles, Fr Sylvain Ducange, recently appointed as the next Superior, Fr Ange Zucchi, Fr Jean Sylvain, Fr Jean Baptista, Fr Julio Nau, Fr Gerald Jeannot and  Fr Jean-Paul Mésidor, worked on a plan to relocate the Salesians in the houses in Haiti.

The situation was particularly worrying at the Salesian house of ENAM and the Little Schools of Father Bohnen (OPEPB) which are completely destroyed; Thorland has collapsed in on itself and Gressier has been partially damaged. Thre church and the parish centre of the “Cité Soleil” have totally collapsed.

The house at Fleuriot has been seriously damaged as has that at Petiont Ville. The houses of Thorland and Petion Ville have become reception centres and at present have about 3500 people there.

The Salesians who were living in the communities of ENAM and Fleuriot are being housed in other communities in Haiti, while the young post-novices will go for the time being to the Antilles Province.

To coordinate relief better, to  facilitate communication and plan for the development of activities a Salesian Crisis Committee has been established made up of Fr Jacques Charles, Fr Ducange Sylvain and Fr Ange Zucchi. Each community in Haiti will need to send in a detailed report of the situation of the Salesians, the young people and the property.

The priority needs are: the temporary re-location of the Salesians, finding help for the people now in the care of the Salesians, protecting the houses and the works, repairing the perimeter walls, creating a team to assess the condition of the buildings  and finally setting in motion a medium-term reconstruction programme for the buildings destroyed.

Published 19/01/2010

19/1/2010 - Haiti – Interview with Fr Jacques Charles

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – Fr Jacques Charles, the current Superior of the “Blessed Philip Rinaldi” Vice Province of Haiti, gives brief account of the Salesians and the present situation in Haiti. The interview which is available on ANSchannel, was given to “Missioni Don Bosco - Media Center” in Turin and broadcast in the series “Terre Lontane” on Telepace at the beginning of 2009.

Fr Charles points out how the Salesians presence in the country goes back a long way:  the first Salesians arrived in 1935, at the request of the President of Haiti who had seen the work they were doing in the neighbouring country of the Dominican Republic and wanted them to do the same educational work on behalf of poor young people in Haiti.

During their 75 years in Haiti the Salesians have had to face various challenges. If  in the  past the main problem was the result of the Dictatorship, today there are other  problems which make the work of the Salesians difficult. “The challenges are certainly great. For example we have in Haiti 9 communities, six of which have vocational training and technical schools. With the new problems arising from globalisation, how are we to give a technical training to our young people so as to respond to the needs of today, when there aren’t the qualified teachers and when teaching material and the funds to buy it to provide these youngsters with a high quality education are lacking? The youngsters who come to us are from the poor classes” Nowadays Salesians have to distinguish between the poor and the desperate.

The geographical, political and cultural location of Haiti have great implications. “The main problem is the geographical location of the country,” Fr Charles explains. “We are in Central America, but we are an island with the Dominican Republic as our neighbour where they speak Spanish. We are the only ones to speak French and to have a French culture. We are therefore totally isolated. We are of African origin, we were colonised by the French and we are surrounded by North Americans and Latin Americans. We don’t know which direction to go. I think that all these factors together have an influence on the situation of Haiti”.  

As regards Church circles, Fr Charles mentions the support of the Congregation and the help and the concern always shown by the Rector Majors, Fr Viganò, Fr Vecchi and today Fr Chávez.

The problem of education does not only apply to the Salesian schools: the Government, which always points out that it does not have sufficient funds, recently held a Congress on education in which the absolute essential need there is to invest in  education emerged in order to resolve the country’s future. This reflection on education also included the Salesians who tried to encourage the institutions to focus on the subject of formation and identified the priorities.

The Salesian communities are now well integrated in the country: of 60 Salesians in Haiti only 2 are foreign missionaries - an Italian and a Dutchman. The others are all Haitians; and as part of the Salesian “Interamerica” Region, the Vice Province of Haiti is working to create synergy with the other Provinces, explaining the nature of its specific problems and always working for the benefit of the young people in the Region according the mind of Don Bosco.

Published 19/01/2010

Montag, 18.01.2010

Haiti: Keine Hoffnung mehr für Verschüttete in Don Bosco Zentren

Port-au-Prince: 18. Januar 2010

Nachdem sich die Kommunikation mit den Salesianern Don Boscos in Port-au-Prince verbessert hat, gibt es für Jugend Eine Welt traurige Gewissheit. Knapp 500 Schüler sind in der eingestürzten Schule der Patres ums Leben gekommen. Anfangs ging man noch von 200 verschütteten Schülern aus. Hoffnung auf Überlebende gibt es seit heute nicht mehr. Das dreistöckige Gebäude stürzte um 16.53 Ortszeit ein, als ausgerechnet der Nachmittagsunterricht zu Ende war und sich fast alle im Erdgeschoss befanden. Unter den Opfern sind knapp 200 Grundschüler, sowie 200 junge Frauen, die im Don Bosco Zentrum an einer pädagogischen Lehrerfortbildung teilnahmen.

Die Gebäude, die zum Zentrum gehören, darunter die technische Berufsschule, eine Grundschule, der Kindergarten und das Straßenkinderzentrum sind völlig zerstört.

Hilflos müssen die Salesianer mit ansehen, wie bewaffnete Plünderer brauchbare Geräte und Gegenstände aus dem Schutt entwenden. Pater Zucchi, der mehr als 50 kleine Schulen in Nachbarschaftsvereinen betreut hatte, dazu: „Es steht nichts mehr von unseren Häusern. Wir haben alles verloren. Die Studenten, die gestorben sind, müssen begraben werden, außerdem kümmern wir uns um die verletzten Schüler. Die meisten brauchen einen chirurgischen Eingriff, aber die wenigen Krankenhäuser, die noch arbeiten, sind total überfüllt. Plünderer haben alle Computer und Laptops aus unseren kaputten Büros entwendet. Sogar unsere Aktenordner wurden geraubt. Wir müssen wieder ganz von vorne anfangen und planen unsere Nothilfe nun mit Stift und Papier.“

18/1/2010 - Haiti – The relief operation is under way

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – Almost a week later, what happened in Haiti  is still in the world headlines; the Secretary General of UNO, Ban Ki-moon, described it as “"one of the worst humanitarian crises in decades."

The International relief operation is under way and, although there are some problems, help is being distributed to the people. Where it is possible reception and assistance centres have been established at the Salesian houses, and the Salesians and the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians are doing all they can to welcome and help the people.

The New Rochelle Mission Office, acting in close contact with the Salesians in Santo Domingo, continues its work of planning and coordinating help for the Salesians in Haiti. The Rector Major, Fr Pascual Chávez, being constantly updated on the situation and developments, continues to offer his encouragement to the Salesians in Haiti who have been so severely tried.

The process of recovering the bodies of the pupils and teachers at Enam slowly continues. The latest information we have is that under the ruibble of the Salesian school, 250 pupils and some of their teachers were killed. Of these so far only 60 bodies have been recovered. Very many other Salesian pupils died in the ruins of their own homes.

Alarm is also being raised by some of those involved: cases have been discovered of unscrupulous people fraudulently collecting funds. For this reason it is very strongly recommended that contributions be only made to or through accredited and authorised organisations or NGO. In Italy, for example, the International Volunteer Movement for Development (VIS), is working with the Italian Emergency Relief Agency (AGIRE).

ITALCEMENTI, which produces building materials, through Dr. Silvestro Capitanio, a Salesian Past Pupil, in a meeting with the Vicar of the Rector Major, Fr Adriano Bregolin, has said that they will collaborate in the process of dealing with the rubble and other works and arrange for the necessary machinery to arrive as soon as possible.

Fr Attilio Stra the Salesian missionary, has sent news that while in hospital in Santo Domingo, on Saturday evening he was visited by the President of the Republic Leonel Fernández Reyna.

In the video information section of ANS a documentary is available, made some years ago by Missioni Don Bosco of Turin, which gives an account of the work of the Salesians in Haiti before the earthquake.

Published 18/01/2010

Sonntag, 17.01.10

Haiti 17.01.2010 : Port-au-Prince im Ausnahmezustand

Die Kommunikation mit den Salesianern auf Haiti ist nun sechs Tage nach dem verheerenden Erdbeben einigermaßen stabil. Aus der Dominikanischen Republik konnten Br. Alberto Rodriguez und Franklin Ortgea mit einem Hubschrauber nach Port-au-Prince reisen, um sich ein Bild von der Situation vor Ort zu machen.  

Sie besuchten auch die völlig zerstörte Don Bosco Berufsschule ENAM. „Stille, Trauer und unermessliches Leiden liegt über dem zerstörten Gelände.“ so Br. Alberto. Immer noch sind die Leichen der knapp 500 Kinder, die unter dem Schutt begraben liegen, nicht geborgen. Als sich das Beben um 16.53 Ortszeit ereignete, befanden sich die Grundschüler, darunter auch Straßenkinder, im Erdgeschoss, als das dreistöckige Gebäude über ihnen zusammenbrach. Inzwischen haben Plünderer fast alles aus den Trümmern geraubt. Die Salesianer müssen hilflos zusehen wie Schulbänke, Computer und technischen Geräte ihrer zerstörten Schule entwendet werden.

Fieberhaft wird in vielen Don Bosco Einrichtungen auf der Welt an einer Verbesserung der Lage für die Menschen in Haiti gearbeitet. Auch die UN, sowie andere große Hilfsorganisationen, sind über die Aktivitäten informiert und arbeiten eng mit den Salesianern zusammen. Deren Einrichtungen könnten zu wichtigen Sammel- und Verteilungsstellen umfunktioniert werden. In einer Telefonkonferenz mit der amerikanischen FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) der US-Regierung wurden weiter Schritte gemeinsam geplant.  

Zwei italienische Kommunikationsexperten warten derweil in Santo Domingo auf ihre Ausreise. Weiterhin wird medizinisches Personal benötigt. Die Don Bosco Organsation VIS aus Italien koordiniert den Einsatz weiterer Fachkräfte. Menschen aus aller Welt zeigten sich betroffen vom Leiden der Menschen in der Karibik. In Westafrika sammelten die Don Bosco Einrichtungen über 30.000 US$- die meisten der Spender leben selber nur knapp oberhalb der Armutsgrenze.

Vor Ort ist die Situation weiterhin schier unerträglich. Mehrere kleine Nachbeben haben die traumatisierte Bevölkerung weiter verunsichert. „Wir schlafen draußen auf der Straße inmitten von Schutt und dem Gestank der verwesenden Leichen“, so Pater Lephene. „Möge Gott uns weiter Kraft geben, diesen Alptraum zu überstehen.“

17/1/2010 - Haiti – Report of the Salesian Technical Commission

(ANS – Port-au-Prince) – Friday 15 January, three days after the earthquake a technical commission from the Dominican Republic in the Antilles Province was able to go to Haiti, to Port-au-Prince and obtain first hand knowledge of the situation.

The Provincial Fr Victor Pichardo had already arrived earlier in Port-au-Prince by military helicopter. On his return Fr Pichardo took with him Fr Attilio Stra, an Italian Salesian missionary, the Rector of the Enam (École Nationale des Arte et  Métiers) community, who had survived the collapse of the building, for hospital treatment in Santo Domingo. His injuries are not serious.

Bro. Alberto Rodríguez, Provincial Economer, Mr Franklin Ortega, from the Development Office of Antilles Province and two  Salesians from the Barahona community, the closest to Haiti, Fr Ángel Sánchez and Fr Gabriel Almonte, saw for themselves the chaotic situation and the powerlessness of the people now living on the streets, in the squares and public parks.

The first stop was at the “Saint John Bosco” community of the Enam, the most seriously affected of the Salesian works in Haiti. Here they met  Fr Wim Boksebeld and Fr Olibrice Zucchi Ange. “Silence, suffering and sadness reigned,” the four visitors said. Most of the pupils and their teachers are still buried under the ruins. At 16.53, local time, when the earth began to shake the pupils of the primary school were on the first floor of the three storey building which is now a heap of ruins. Unfortunately here too, as in other places in the city, there have been cases of looting, as persons unknown have carried away what remained, desks, chairs, and school computers used for teaching.

Gianluca Antonelli, a member of International Voluntary Service for Development (VIS), in conjunction with the New Rochelle Salesian Mission Office, has promised to get the Italian Civil Protection authorities, already working in the city, involved.

The other Salesian centres in Port-au-Prince are all in the same situation. The Salesians are camping out in the courtyards and spending the night in cars or in the open air.

The small group also met Fr Jeacques Charles, the current Superior of the Vice Province  of Haiti, and his appointed successor Fr Sylvain Duncange. The most urgent need is to provide the Salesians in Haiti, already at work there, the minimum necessary infrastructure to take in and care for people. The first things they need are  drinking water and tinned food supplies and food for young children because there is very little food in the city and what can be found is by now often contaminated; then they need medicine and tents.

On their return, by means of a  teleconference, Bro. Alberto Rodríguez and Mr. Franklin Ortega updated the New Rochelle Mission Office Crisis Committee  who have already begun  making plans for relief assistance and its distribution.

The network of solidarity on the part of the Salesian Provinces and the Salesian  Family continues to expand as initiatives multiply to collect the necessary  funds for first aid.

Published 17/01/2010

Samstag, 16.01.10

Haiti: Salesianer danken für die weltweite Solidarität – Katastrophale Zustände auf den Straßen

P. Pierre Lephene, Leiter des zerstörten Straßenkinderzentrums Lakay und P. Attilio Stra, langjähriger Projektpartner von Jugend Eine Welt, berichten heute in einer Mail aus Port-au-Prince über die katastrophalen Zustände und bedanken sich für die weltweite Solidarität: 

Liebe Freunde,

wir beide sind noch glimpflich aus den Trümmern herausgekommen. Ein Salesianer aus unserer Gemeinschaft ist gestorben, viele weitere verletzt. Zwei weitere aus einem anderen Don Bosco Haus sind gestorben. Pater Stra wird morgen nach Santo Domingo aufbrechen, denn er ist an der Wirbelsäule schwer verletzt.

Unser Haus ist zusammengebrochen als wir gerade ein Meeting hatten Wir haben alles verloren. Wir sind jetzt genauso auf der Straße, wie alle anderen Menschen hier. Die Werkstätten unserer Berufsschule sind komplett zerstört, die Schulen liegen in Trümmern. Bis jetzt zählen wir 250 tote Kinder und Jugendliche unserer Einrichtungen. Ihre Leichen verwesen schon, aber es ist nicht möglich sie aus den Trümmern zu bergen. Tausende Menschen sind auf den Straßen und die Hilfe bei weitem nicht ausreichend.

Im Straßenkinderzentrum Lakay sind alle Mauern zusammengebrochen, wir sind wirklich alle auf der Straße. Die Menschen hier sind in ständiger Suche nach Wasser und Lebensmitteln. In Sicherheit sind wir hier noch lange nicht, denn die Menschen versuchen in den Trümmern unserer Einrichtungen, uns das wenige, was wir noch haben, wegzunehmen. Wir wissen nicht, wie wir hier weiter machen sollen. Wir müssen komplett von vorne anfangen, denn es ist wirklich alles kaputt.

Wir stehen unter höchster psychischer Anspannung, denn wir fürchten Nachbeben. Alle Menschen schlafen deswegen in den Straßen und auf den Bürgersteigen, wo tausende von Toten verwesen und einen furchtbaren Gestank abgeben. Die überlebenden Kinder und Jugendlichen des Straßenkinderzentrums Lakay suchen in den Trümmern unserer Einrichtungen Schutz und ein wenig Wärme in der Nacht. Aber wielange geht das noch so weiter, ohne Strom, ohne Wasser? Es war schon sehr schwer, und jetzt ist es noch schwieriger geworden. Soviele Menschen sind immer noch unter den Trümmern vergraben…

Wir danken euch für eure Solidarität, eure Anteilnahme und eure Freundschaft.

Pater Pierre Lephene und Pater Attilio Stra

Aktuelle Berichte zur Situation der Don Bosco Schwestern lesen Sie hier:

Don Bosco Schwestern Haiti

Freitag, 15.01.2010

15/1/2010 - RMG – Aggiornamenti su Haiti, altri due salesiani morti

Zwei junge Salesianer (sie waren im 3. Jahr des Studiums – Theologie) sind in Port au Prince gestorben – das Philosophie Institut ist zusammengebrochen. New Rochelle versucht direkte Hilfe zu leisten und Kontakt auf Haiti aufzunehmen. Verschiedene SDB (u.a. Provinzökonom der Provinz Antillen) sind unterwegs nach Port-Au-Prince. Die FMA sind alle lebendig und gesund (nur eine leichte verletze)

(ANS – Roma) – Nonostante la difficoltà di stabilire delle comunicazioni con Haiti, si è venuti a conoscenza della morte di Atsime Wilfrid e Vibrun Valsaint, due giovani salesiani in formazione, al terzo anno di teologia, rimasti uccisi dal crollo dell’Istituto di Filosofia “San Francesco di Sales” nel quartiere di Fleuriot-Tabarre a Port-au-Prince.Ancora limitata e frazionata la conoscenza della situazione che si ha dei Salesiani ad Haiti a circa due giorni dal terremoto che ha devastato la capitale. Permane la difficoltà a stabilire una comunicazione diretta.

La Procura missionaria salesiana di New Rochelle ha già iniziato a coordinare la logistica dei primi aiuti e a tentare di stabilire un contatto diretto con Haiti.

Don Calixte Iguintz, della comunità di Gonaives, si è messo in viaggio per Port-au-Prince per ristabilire i contatti con gli altri salesiani.

L’Economo dell’Ispettoria delle Antille, il sig. Alberto Rodriguez, Economo provinciale, direttore dell`Ufficio per lo sviluppo ad Haiti, sig. Franklin Ortega, sono diretti alla capitale haitiana per valutare e avviare una ricognizione della realtà salesiana. L’idea iniziale di raggiungere la città in elicottero è stata accantonata in quanto lo spazio aereo è stato chiuso, ma i responsabili della Procura di New Rochelle contano sempre in una revoca del divieto, in caso contrario utilizzeranno un fuoristrada. Gli stessi operatori sono riusciti a procurare 3 telefoni satellitari con il caricabatterie solare per cercare di stabilire un ponte comunicativo in grado di supportare l’organizzazione logistica dei soccorsi salesiani, tali strumenti dovrebbero essere operativi dal 19 gennaio prossimo con le dovute autorizzazioni governative.

Le Figlie di Maria Ausiliatrice, grazie ad una fortuita comunicazione telefonica con Madre Yvonne Reungoat, hanno fatto sapere che sono tutte salve, compresa la giovane suora ferita, subito dimessa per le lievi lesioni riportate, e che si stanno già prodigando per aiutare la gente e i salesiani nei soccorsi.

Anche altre realtà, come un gruppo canadese di volontari, “Feed My Children” e “Cross International”, diretti ad Haiti, hanno ricevuto l’incarico di monitorare lo stato e le necessità della realtà salesiana.

La “Catholic News Service” e la CNN hanno dedicato un servizio all’opera di Port-au-Prince Enam dove il crollo della struttura ha sepolto oltre 200 allievi e i salesiani. Il corpo del salesiano coadiutore, sig. Hubert Sanon, è ancora sotto le macerie. La segretaria dell’Istituto, la signorina, Herodianne Thelot, risulta dispersa.

Sono stati trovati i cadaveri di Atsime Wilfrid e Vibrun Valsaint, i due giovani salesiani in formazione, al terzo anno di teologia, uccisi dal crollo dell’Istituto di Filosofia “San Francesco di Sales”  nel quartiere di Fleuriot-Tabarre a Port-au-Prince.

La Procura missionaria salesiana di New Rochelle ha fatto già partire un container di riso il cui arrivo è previsto per lunedì 18 gennaio. 
Pubblicato il 15/01/2010

Donnerstag, 14.01.2010

14/1/2010 - RMG – The Salesian world gets moving

(ANS – Rome) – The Salesian world is already gearing itself up to respond as quickly as possible to help the people of Haiti hit by the earthquake on Tuesday afternoon.

The Missions Department of the Congregation, in collaboration with the Salesian Mission Office in New Rochelle, (United States) and the “Don Bosco Network” (DBN) is busy creating  a net-work to collect funds from the Provinces and from benefactors around the world. The Provinces in Spain, Venezuela and Italy are already actively engaged.

The Salesian Missions are working with “Catholic Charities”, “Catholic Relief Services” and “Feed the Children” to deal with the more urgent food and health emergencies.

The Missions Department is working on the idea, at a later stage, of  coordinating the offers of human voluntary resources coming in from various places.

Communication in and with the country is still difficult: the “Feed the Children” organisation is trying to contact the various Salesian houses in Haiti also using satellite connections.  Meanwhile  attempts are being made to establish a network of  e-mails communications between the Salesian Mission Offices and the NGO which are in the country so as to coordinate relief efforts.

Meanwhile more news has been coming in about the Salesians in the “Blessed Philip Rinaldi” Vice Province of Haiti: Fr Attilio Stra, Rector of the house at Port-au-Prince-Enam has been injured, Fr Simon Gatine Joseph Maceus, the creator of the “Timkatec” Project for street children in Petion-Ville, has been taken to Miami (United States) for medical treatment, although his condition is not causing too much concern. There is still no further information about the  200 + pupils in the Port-au-Prince-Enam school.

It is still proving difficult the establish contact with those in charge of the Vice Province and with other Salesians.

Published 14/01/2010

14/1/2010 - RMG – The Salesian presence in Haiti

(ANS – Rome) – There are 66 Salesians working in the “Blessed Philip Rinaldi” Vice Province of Haiti. The 9 communities are involved in other activities in the country, most of them concerned with the care and also the formal and non-formal education of youngsters who are very poor, off the streets and at risk. The earthquake on 12 January seriously affected those who every day are fighting to give dignity and value to lives.

“The history of Salesian work in Haiti is linked from the outset with an institute, the “National School of Arts and Trades” at Port-au-Prince, better known  by the generic name “St John Bosco”.  In October 1934 President Vincent, who had seen the work done by the Salesians in a neighbouring country, invited Mgr Pittini, Archbishop of Santo Domingo, to found at Port-au-Prince a work similar to that carried out in the Dominican capital.  The following year the Rector Major sent to Port-au-Prince an Extraordinary Visitor, Fr. Anthony Candela who, with Mgr Pittini and the Haitian authorities drew up a basic agreement for the new foundation.  The Rector Major  delegated Fr Marie Gimbert, of French and Breton origin and a former Provincial of Lyons, to implant the Salesian charism in Haiti.  He arrived in the country on 27 May 1936, accompanied by an Italian Brother Adrian Massa.  Later other confreres came to complete the community.

The workshops, under the direction of young and dynamic Italian Salesians, gave the school a sound start until it soon became the best professional school in the country.  The addition of extra personnel from Belgium prompted an effort to promote local vocations.  The first Haitian Salesian, Fr Serges Lamaute, was professed in 1946, and in the following year the first Haitian Brother, Hubert Sanon, made his first profession in Cuba.  In 1948 a group of five candidates were sent to France for their novitiate and the study of philosophy.

It was only in 1951 that the Salesians were able to begin a work at Petionville and in 1955 that they could go to Cap-Haïtien  to found the first parish in Haiti dedicated to St John Bosco.

From its foundation Haiti became successively a part of the Mexican-Antilles Province with headquarters at Havana, then part of the Antilles Province (together with Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico) with the provincial house in Santo Domingo.  From January 1992, Haiti became a Vice-province with headquarters at Port-au-Prince. At present there are ten foundations, including three houses of formation: the prenovitiate, novitiate and postnovitiate.

Thanks to the witness of the pioneers, Salesian work is well implanted, with significant activity in very poor areas of great need.  Today Don Bosco and his charism are at home in Haiti.

(From the Letter of the Rector Major “You who seek the lord; look to the rock from which you were hewn” - AGC 393).

The Salesians are operating in conjunction with various groups of the Salesian Family present in the country, especially with the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians.

Published 14/01/2010

Mittwoch, 13.01.2010

(ANS – Port-Au-Prince) – In spite of the difficulties in communicating with Haiti we have heard that among the victims of the earthquake which struck the Caribbean island of Haiti yesterday there is the Salesian Brother Hubert Sanon 85 years of age.

At present among those missing is a Salesian priest aged 38, Fr Harold Bernard, buried under the ruins; there is  no further news of him. The two Salesians were at work when at 16.53 local time, a few kilometres from Port-au-Prince there was a scale 7 earthquake.

As yet there is no news whether or not among the victims there are youngsters or other Salesians from “Saint John Bosco” in Port-au-Prince-Enam, where Br. Sanon and Fr Bernard were living. Here the Salesians have a primary school, a technical school and also a reception centre for youngsters in difficulty and an oratory.

Published 13/01/2010