The Diocese of Lisala is one of the oldest and largest Democratic Republic of the Congo, with an area of over 24,000 square miles. Situated in the north of the country, in the Congo basin, it is crisscrossed by the Congo River and its many tributaries.
At the heart of the protests is a rejection of violence in every form and a condemnation of the self-perpetuating dictatorship of the regime; protesters also have called for free and transparent elections.
In the wake of an attack on a Catholic seminary, the leader of the Church in the Democratic Republic has issued an appeal about “the alarming security situation” in his country.
The rector of a seminary in the Democratic Republic of Congo refused a militia’s request for space on its grounds. In the wake of authorities’ crackdown on the militia, its members attacked and gravely damaged the seminary.
The bishops of the Democratic Republic have issued an urgent warning that rising violence and political unrest are threatening the nation with “unraveling and chaos.”