Dear friends and supporters
My stay in Bukavu had gone too well for there not to be, in the end, complications.
The Ebola alert was triggered in Kivu on May 18, due to two suspected cases in Goma (North Kivu). Already for days the outbreak that originated in Uganda had spread to neighboring Ituri province in northern Congo. This was enough for Rwanda to close the border separating Goma from Gisenyi and the next day (on Monday the 18th) the one at Bukavu (Ruzizi). It had been said, though, that internationals who had a plane ticket from Kigali could pass through, so I did not worry too much, despite the fact that the Italian embassy in Kinshasa had recommended that I get out of the country as soon as possible.
I still had too much to do in Bukavu, and I naively did not expect them to completely close the borders overnight, as they did on Friday, May 22. Among other things, I had learned that the Rwandan authorities did not want us to stay on their territory except as long as it took to get to the airport, and my flight was scheduled for Saturday night. So on Friday afternoon, as I was bidding farewell to the boys at the workshop, I got word that the borders were now definitely closed. So I rushed from the city to the missionary house where I was staying. to retrieve my three things and run to the Ruzizi 1 border, which is only 2 miles from where I was standing. The usually crowded border was deserted. There was an official on the Congolese side to let through the rare Rwandan citizens, who could cross but were then put in a detention center for a 4-week quarantine. It was very kind, but there was no way to get through. It was the Rwandan side that would block me, he explained. And so I returned in the evening, by then it was getting dark, on foot to relieve the tension, with terrible frustration, fear of being stuck indefinitely, and a lot of guilt.
From the next day, and for the next 4-5 days, there followed continuous telephone exchanges with the Italian embassy in Kinshasa and the honorary consul in Kigali, an alternation of illusions, hopes, disappointments. And much confusion. On Saturday afternoon, the consul led me to hope that I might be able to cross over and catch my flight, since that same afternoon three Italian surgeons had managed to get out of Goma, thanks to his intervention, so I once again rushed to the border, where I waited again until dark, and then returned, very tired, to the house. Fortunately the Xaverian Fathers still welcomed me to them. And fortunately the consul in Kigali kept negotiating with the Rwandan Foreign Ministry for me to get out, but it was all very stressful and complicated.
Finally, with a new ticket in hand, on Friday morning, May 29, I still showed up at the border. After several waits and discussions on the Rwandan side, where they were waiting for me anyway, they let me through but forced me to take a cab to the airport in Kigali instead of the bus I usually take, and we were continuously escorted by police to the airport.
They had arranged everything perfectly, and several police cars took turns. Driving to Kigali, a road full of curves, was quite crazy, especially in the last two hours when traffic was heavy. And we were always behind the police car. I was never allowed out.
At the airport we arrived after more than six hours of travel, and still there was a long wait to get consent to enter. And once I got in, they showed me where to sit and I was guarded for several more hours, forbidden to leave; they controlled me until I boarded.
Then upon arrival at Fiumicino airport, the doctors from the prevention department (USMAF) were already waiting for me, even before I got off the plane, complete with an ambulance. Fortunately, I had no fever or other symptoms and still denied any possible exposure or contact, so they let me go! But woe if I get a fever during these first three weeks, I can't afford even a trivial flu, because they would send me straight to the Spallanzani!
It is not known how long the borders will remain closed. In South Kivu and Goma there have been no more new Ebola cases, while in Ituri and the Bunya area (North Kivu vucino to Ituri) have continued to increase, despite the prompt reaction of WHO, MSF and other organizations. The border closure is a serious problem for the already devastated local economy (prices have further increased, so many people who were making small trades are out of work etc.) and also for all the organizations that have opened accounts in Rwanda. We as well use for our projects an account opened at a Rwandan bank near the border in the name of Ekabana,
a center for abandoned children run by Natalina in Bukavu,
an Italian nun with whom I also collaborated during this stay of mine.....
Really Congo is not an easy country....
I would like to end with a big thank you to all the people who helped me both to be able to get to Bukavu, who made my stay there possible, and then helped me get out of it ! I
My biggest worry was not being able to go back to Mwenga, and who knows when I can go back....
