Prelate in Guinea Denounces “abusive expropriation” of Religious Orders’ Land

In his September 20 statement, Archbishop Coulibaly recalls that it is not the first-time members of the Church have come under attack from locals over land.

“In fact, since the 1960s, the Catholic Church has often been the victim of abusive expropriation of its property in many places throughout the country,” the 67-year-old Prelate says

He adds, “With the events of recent days in Kendoumayah, it can be said that the actions of the past continue even today, although Article 1 of the Constitution of April 7, 2020 states that 'the Republic of Guinea is a secular state'.”

Archbishop Coulibaly accuses ill-intentioned people who are pulling the strings of discord in the latest land dispute saying, “This action in no way promotes the peace and security of priests, religious and seminarians and our communities in Kendoumayah.”

He also calls on the inhabitants of Kendoumayah to end the violence.

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“This will ensure that tolerance and religious coexistence, the rule of law … might be respected and applied to all the citizens of the country,” says the Guinean Prelate.

The Brothers of Saint John arrived in the West African nation of Guinea in 1993. Two years later, the Sisters of Saint John joined them in Kendoumayah.

The Little Sisters of Our Lady of Guinea also set up their novitiate in the same locality in 1995.

Referencing on the land dispute between the Church and the inhabitants, the Superior of the Saint John Community in Kendoumayah, Fr. Emmanuel Côme said that young people from the village supported by administrative authorities are trying to forcibly seize a 5-hectare estate that the Religious Order bought in 1993.

“This domain was acquired to protect the peacefulness of the monastery, for prayer and the tranquility of the seminarians. The young people are trying to expropriate it to build a parking lot and a market,” Fr. Emmanuel told La Croix in an interview.

The Cleric said the expropriation has been going on despite the community’s letters of complaint and protest to the administrative and judicial authorities.

“We wrote to the Mayor, and every time we met with him, he told us that he was going to give the order for the work to stop. This was never done until the end of the development,” the Superior of the St. John Community said.

The Benedict XVI Major Seminary set up in 2008 to train future priests in Guinea has also come under attack from the inhabitants of Kendoumayah.

The Rector of the Major Seminary, Fr. François Sylla, said all the Christian communities in the area are under attack.

“Recently we have been attacked in the name of our faith and it is the Church that is threatened in these areas,” he said.

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“Last Saturday, when I was returning from the Brothers of the Saint John, the young people who saw me and understood that I am from the seminary began to shout slogans at me, like 'we don't want you here,’” the Cleric has been quoted as saying.

Fr. François recalled that there had always been peaceful co-existence between members of the institutions of the Church and the local population.

“The elders were hospitable; they welcomed us and participated in all our activities,” he recalled and regretted that “for some time now there has been an increase in tension with regard to our presence in the area.”

Jude Atemanke is a Cameroonian journalist with a passion for Catholic Church communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of Buea in Cameroon. Currently, Jude serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.