Deadly Ebola outbreak sees major Catholic event postponed

The Martyrs Day celebration, scheduled for June 3 at the Namugongo Martyrs Shrine in the Catholic Archdiocese of Kampala, attracts thousands of pilgrims each year.

On May 17, Uganda President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni said the decision to postpone follows consultations with key stakeholders in the east African nation.

“After consultations with the national epidemic response task force and religious leaders, we have decided to postpone the Martyrs Day to a later date, which will be communicated,” Mr Museveni said.

The Ugandan president explained that the decision to postpone the celebration “was made because Uganda receives thousands of pilgrims annually from eastern Congo, which is currently experiencing an Ebola outbreak”.

“To safeguard everyoneʼs lives, it is essential that this important event be postponed,” he added.

The president encouraged those who have begun their journey to return home, continue observing the precautionary measures, report anyone who is sick and encourage those who are ill to seek medical care.

The Ebola virus is believed to have killed 136 people in the DR Congo, officials say, with more than 514 cases now suspected in the country, the BBC reported on May 20. One person has reportedly died in Uganda.

World Health Organisation chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared the outbreak an international emergency last week.

The Namugongo Martyrs’ Shrine stands on the site where St Charles Lwanga and his companions – many of them pages in the royal court – were executed on the orders of Kabaka (King) Mwanga II of the Buganda kingdom.

Uganda Martyrs Day commemorates 45 Christian converts aged between 14 and 50 who were killed between 1885 and 1887 because of their faith during the early years of Christianity in Uganda.

Among them were 22 Catholics who were beatified in 1920 and canonised in 1964.

FULL STORY

Uganda Postpones Martyrs’ Day Celebrations Over Ebola Fears (By Silas Isenjia/National Catholic Register)

‘Ebola has tortured us’: Fear as DR Congo outbreak spreads (BBC)