Cabo Delgado is facing a critical situation as the Jihadists who have been waging an insurgency in this northern province of Mozambique are trying to establish a caliphate in the image of the Islamic State, says Bishop António Juliasse of Pemba. In a message sent to Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), Bishop Juliasse stated that the intentions of the armed groups are completely clear:
“The signs are all there. They speak openly of a caliphate. When they find people, when they kidnap victims, that is what they say, that they are working for a caliphate”.
Anti-Christian violence in Cabo Delgado
The Jihadist attacks in the province originally began in 2017. Since October 2017, the heavy fighting has caused over 6,300 deaths and resulted in more than one million displaced persons. At the beginning of the conflict, the militants mainly targeted military and government buildings; however, over the past few years, they have taken on a more specifically anti-Christian stance in this Muslim-majority region of Mozambique.
The consequences of this shift are devastating:
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Loss of life: Over 300 Catholics have been murdered, many by target decapitation.
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Destruction of heritage: At least 117 Church buildings have been destroyed, including small chapels and large historic facilities.
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Loss of historic missions: The church of the St Louis of Montfort mission, which dated from 1946, was burned to the ground at the end of April.
This extreme level of violence and anti-Christian rhetoric has begun to take a heavy toll on the wider population. Bishop António Juliasse explained to ACN that the hate speech accompanying the attacks is deeply worrying. For a long time, religion was an aspect that made coexistence easier, but now it is becoming an obstacle that divides communities. In the local villages, Christians used to attend Muslim funerals and vice versa, but this historical integration is now being questioned, and the bishop clarifies that this division is not because of the Christians. He warns that the Government and society must address this before it is too late.
Silence is not the answer, but neither is force
Bishop António Juliasse told ACN that although silence may be a sign of caution, it can easily be read as a lack of interest in the sufferings of the people of the province. He insists that silence is always dangerous, hard to read, and leads to widespread confusion. For this reason, he advocates for facing up to the situation, speaking up, guiding the population, and having an open discussion as a nation, noting that current management is not handling it correctly.
However, the Church in Mozambique has also made it clear that military force cannot be considered the sole solution to the war. Bishop Juliasse explained that they recently published a pastoral note protesting against the current state of affairs, while simultaneously pointing out alternative paths:
“I don’t believe that the military option is the only solution. We need to find different paths, including one that Mozambique is already familiar with, the path of dialogue. The people of Mozambique need to dialogue so that this war can end”.
This approach is vital for the future of religious coexistence, since many of those who are currently fighting in the forests are originally from Mozambique, are sons of this land, and form a part of it. While there may be a few foreigners among them, the nation must gather the courage to face up to this reality through dialogue.
The nine years of insurgency in northern Mozambique have taken a massive toll on the country, which remains one of the poorest in the world. Even though this situation causes great pain, the Bishop of Pemba insists that the people must not lose hope. The pontifical charity ACN continues to support the local Church in facing this challenge, providing vital emergency aid, psychological and social support, and helping to rebuild the damaged infrastructure across the region.
