YANGON (UCAN): As the Covid-19 coronavirus [SARS-CoV-2] crisis deepens in Myanmar, more parishes have launched initiatives to help communities affected by the deadly contagion.
St. Gemma Galgani Parish in Shwe Pyi Thar township, on the outskirts of Yangon, started a relief programme to support medical help, refill oxygen tanks, spray disinfectants and help buy food for families.
Dominican Father Paul Aung Myint Win, the parish priest, launched the programme following soaring cases in the community. With limited financial resources, the parish is being helped by young volunteers.
“We must reach out to the communities and give our hands as people are facing challenges over the Covid crisis amid the political and economic crisis,” Father Myint Win said.
Church officials have established the Myanmar Catholic Church Humanitarian Assistance Initiatives [MCHAI] in response to the third wave of the pandemic.
Seminaries, parish halls, pastoral centres and boarding schools have been converted into care centres to accommodate people who are in a serious condition and need oxygen support.
Father Henry Eikhlein, executive coordinator of MCHAI, said bishops have urged the Church to play a vital role in the Covid-19 response at diocesan and parish levels across the country.
In Myitkyina, Kachin state, Church officials opened Covid-19 care centres by transforming a boarding school and pastoral centre
Father Eikhlein, from the Diocese of Pathein, said at least three parishes in the diocese have started their own initiatives by opening care centres.
In Myitkyina, Kachin state, Church officials opened Covid-19 care centres by transforming a boarding school and pastoral centre.
Young volunteers have also helped in transporting emergency patients to the centre and with funeral services of those who succumbed to the virus.
A parish hall was converted into a care centre at St. Patrick’s Church in Shatapru Parish.
In late July, the parish priest of Sacred Heart Cathedral in Lashio, Shan state, reached out to needy families, while Salesian priests and seminarians from Thibaw supplied poor families with food and non-food items.
Father George La Ring, cathedral parish priest, said they have provided rice, eggs, oil, beans and onions to nearly 120 needy families regardless of race and religion.
“Our help is just a small effort but shows our care and solidarity with the needy amid the challenges of the political, economic and social crisis in the country,” Father La Ring said.
The junta-controlled Health Ministry reported 312 deaths and 4,713 new cases on August 4, taking total numbers to 311,067 infections and 10,373 deaths, but medics and charitable groups say the actual number of fatalities is higher.
Some 16 aid agencies operating in Myanmar have warned of a spiralling humanitarian catastrophe triggered by skyrocketing Covid-19 cases and widespread violence six months after the military coup on February 1.
