standup.comboniyouth.org.uk

Banquet of Life

Here in Scotland, meanwhile, a great uproar was caused by the events linked to a detention centre for families of asylum seekers whose applications had been turned down by the Home Office. They are taken away from home by the police and send to a prison-like complex in Dungavel, South Lanarkshire.
Back in January Bishop John Mone of Paisley, head of the bishops' J&P commission, was appalled on a visit there, to find children behind bars. He started a campaign of protest collecting well over 24 thousand signatures from Catholic congregations. Only lately civil society has taken up the issue.

I attended a conference entitled: "Break the silence - Close down Dungavel". The reference was not to the Comboni campaign of two years ago about the forgotten wars in Africa, but to the fact that the Scottish executive was blind and dumb to the detention of children behind bars. In fact they claimed that all issues relating to immigrants are reserved to Westminster. The following morning I took part in the manifestation outside Dungavel. A big lorry was adapted to be the stage, with interventions from politicians, trade unionists, party members, and human right activists. "We were all refugees, Irish and Italian, East European and Chilean, and now Asian and African we all made Scotland" was the refrain of the day. They praised the lead given by the Catholic Bishops, especially Bishop John Mone, a message was read also from bishop Joe Devine and support was mentioned also from Bishop Mario Conti.

So in and around Glasgow the Church is playing an active role in defying the politics of those in authority. By the way, the Bishops have eventually appointed Richard McCready to the post of Scottish National Secretary of the Bishops' Justice and Peace Commission. Mainly, we can say that there is a civil society which is alive and kicking…

Many of the people promoting the manifestations of February against the war, are now taking up issues related to the rights of asylum seekers. As a result of the protest, the Scottish parliament passed a resolution to allow the children to attend classes in nearby schools. Churches of different denominations will seek alternative solutions on how to shelter the families now in Dungavel in other more humane accommodation.The summer stay of three scholastics in Glasgow has been a real break-through. New schools have been contacted, and a new field of action has been opened in visiting asylum seekers at St. Mungo’s drop-in centre. There, while playing with the children, they could also teach some English to the young mothers.

You may remember that I mentioned Mary Jean, the Rwandan lady who has helped us to meet other African friends. Thanks to her the last Saturday of August from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. there was a new atmosphere in our house in Carmyle… African families with their children were having a barbeque in our garden. They are willing to animate the Mass for the canonization of Comboni to be held in St. Andrew's Cathedral, Glasgow, on the 15th November. A new initiative has also taken place in missionary animation in the schools making our visiting a way of introducing the cultures of so many young students of different nationalities one to the other. In the next section I am suggesting the very latest and updated material for tackling what is now being called development education aimed especially at youth groups and secondary schools. I see it as a preliminary stage of any vocational promotion program.