Church should push for civil and political liberties

Alex Martin Musiime

What you need to know:

  • Wholeness of human rights. In emphasising the promotion of life, Catholic Church leaders in Africa should further underscore the wholeness of human rights. It should be enunciated by the bench of bishops that the right to life, the right to culture and the right to religion and creed, cannot be enjoyed when other rights that guaranty communal participation, freedom of speech, assembly, et al, are still endangered.

Uganda has been honoured yet again to have their Eminences, their Excellencies, their Graces, their Lordships, distinguished men and women, leaders of the Catholic Church in Africa and Madagascar all gathered in Uganda this month to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar. We are much delighted to have the men of God in this beautiful country, which as many of them are aware, is the Pearl of Africa. They have travelled from far and wide to come to Uganda to commemorate the 50 years since the Symposium was inaugurated by the Pope in 1969.

SECAM golden jubilee comes at a time marked with great achievements of the church in Africa. The church has grown from 45 million followers five decades ago to 177 million people; from 30 dioceses to 450 dioceses today, from a handful of bishops from Africa participating in the Vatican Council II to 600 bishops on the continent. These have all been due to the able leadership of the men and women in the church.

In the same spirit, the church has contributed tremendously towards the socioeconomic, and cultural advancement of people in Africa. The church has historically been at the centre of human development from birth until death. This is illustrated by the fact that one can be born in a church hospital, educated in a church-founded school(s), is nourished either through employment or the spirit by the church, and even at death, the priest presides over the burial.

On the part of education, the Catholic Church-founded schools are many, with the church owning 6,306 schools in Uganda alone. The same church has more than 300 health facilities, among other initiatives that have uplifted the standards of people’s lives in Uganda. The numbers are even bigger in countries such as DR Congo and Angola. The church has done well in all spheres of the socio-economic social and cultural rights. It is apt to say the church has been central in the growth of those rights. We, however, remain with another type where the church can still visibly influence change. That is, in the civil and political rights area.

SECAM is convening at a time of intensified civil and political strife on the continent. It comes to Uganda at a time when there is turmoil in the region - unrest in South Sudan, military crackdown on civilians in Sudan, the bickering between Uganda and Rwanda, the unending war in Libya, and clashes in DRC, among the others. Whereas long-term military leaders are falling, others are entrenching themselves in power for perpetual rule. In 1969 when the SECAM was formed, it was perhaps not fathomable that the continent would still be grappling with the leadership question today. This is due to the fact that independence for many states had been achieved and the move for African solutions was the rosy promise for many post-independence leaders.

Fifty years down the road, the challenges have even grown bigger, there is more militarised governance, political intolerance by those in power. To worsen the situation, there are crackdowns on clerics who express their dissatisfaction with the ruling elite in some African countries. In Uganda, for instance, the military has to an extent become the tools of oppression of God’s people. Those who express divergent opinions from that of the regime face its wrath in form of arrests, torture and political persecutions while the political gatherings of the children of God on the other side of the political divide are forever prohibited. Criticism of the economic and political evils of society has become a sin punishable by charges such as treason, offensive communication, disturbing the peace of the president, etc. These are all happening in these countries-worse still, in the host country: the land of the martyrs who shed their blood for the pursuit of eternal freedom.

SECAM, which will have the President of Uganda being part of the activities, has to speak out categorically against the gross violation of political and civil liberties in Uganda and the other African countries from which the clerics hail. There should not only be a call for peace and harmony as rhetoric, but also a discussion on the mechanisms, which the church as a stakeholder in every state, should devise means to check the excessive powers of abusive regimes.

The symposium ought to further uphold the indivisibility of human rights. In emphasising the promotion of life, Catholic Church leaders in Africa should further underscore the wholeness of human rights. It should be enunciated by the bench of bishops that the right to life, the right to culture and the right to religion and creed, cannot be enjoyed when other rights that guaranty communal participation, freedom of speech, assembly, et al, are still endangered.

The theme of the celebrations is: ‘Church-Family of God in Africa, Celebrate your Jubilee! Proclaim Jesus Christ your Saviour,’ augurs well with the times. In proclaiming Jesus Christ as the saviour, the church needs to further advocate for the freedom He so passionately preached. The church has to extol the oneness of Africa, and for that matter the need to tackle the political challenges that bedevil this family of God as a group.

Often, church leaders are intimidated off politics by imposing politicians. However, we ought not to forget the wise counsel of Pope Francis, when he stated that a good Catholic meddles into politics and further called on the church not to be apathetic by stating that “Indifference is dangerous.”

The conscience that speaks truth to power with or without adversity is critical. Only then shall we conclude that the Symposium, will have added to the many efforts of making Africa a continent where respect, and tolerance of civil and political-ideological differences flourish. To further fortify my averment that the church should be more vibrant in vouching for the civil and political liberties, I quote the words of Archbishop, Dr Peter Sarpong of Kumasi, Ghana, who said: “Christ wants his church not to be meaningless in society or to be pushed to the periphery... [but] ... to be right at the centre of things, right where the action is.”

Mr Musiime is a lawyer.