It was atrocious, disgusting and unbearable to witness the horrible scenes on Saturday 25th of this month, in Kuwait City in the afternoon and in the evening. 25th December being a Christmas Day, Christians go to the Church. Holy Family Cathedral is the main Church for Catholics for worship, this Cathedral or Church is located in Kuwait City. Overwhelming majority of Expatriate Catholics from different nationalities working in Kuwait go for worship in this Church. During the Christmas and Easter Days more people go to this Church. This being the place of worship for Christian Catholics, I don’t understand why non-Christian males are also coming to this Church area. These non-Christians have no business to loiter around this area and spoil the sanctity of this Church, Christianity and Catholicism. By disturbing the peace in the Church Compound and adjoining areas these non-Christians not only disturb the peace of Church goers but also disturb the dignity of their own religion. Above all these non-Christian males by indulging in anti-Christian activities in the Church compound and around Church areas are spoiling the fair image of Kuwait. No religion tells you to disturb the peace of other religions and worshipers of other religions.
Most of the vulgar acts on female Church goers are systematically conducted when these females are leaving the Church and ending near KFC circle and opposite to KFC. The people involved in these vulgar acts activate their vulgarity when they notice the rush of the females leaving the Church and accumulating near and opposite to KFC. Taking advantage of this crowded rush, the vulgar non-Chritian males molest, pinch, hug and catch hold of the females and also rob them of their purses and other valuable golden ornaments. Even in the Church Compound some of these people rob the worshippers. It all happen because of too many people crowding the Church and surrounding areas. I could at one particular time in the evening easily hear a voice of a Goan lady screaming in Konkani saying, ‘Mae ge maje, ago eka poiyat to maka ghott dhorta, kon go dukor ho!!.” These people who indulge in harassing the females are expert in this activity. Yearly twice they indulge in molesting in such a manner the females mainly Christians coming from the Church. When I notice such dirty acts committed on our Christian females whatever nationalities they may have, my Christian feelings are getting hurt. All those males who indulge in such dirty acts and still call themselves as decent people are the worst traitors and most dirty people..
This was not the only time such crimes are committed on Christian ladies by non-Christian rowdies but this a normal happening every year done on Christmas and Easter Days. The victims are Christians mainly Catholic females from Goa, Mangalore and Philippines. Earlier I brought this to the notice of Ex Parish Priest Fr. Gabriel Dias a Goan priest attached to the Cathedral and now settled in Canada. Listening to me, Fr. Gabriel while preaching in the Church advised the females coming to the Church to avoid moving in certain routes. Can the present Church authorities advice similarly from the Church so that no untoward incidents take place on 1st January? I feel Church leaders are obligated to guide and advice our people on this matter not once but hundred times till our folks are educated. The image of Christianity in general and Catholicism in particular is at stake because of such happenings.
A. Veronica Fernandes,
Kuwait.
