By Loucoumane Coulibaly YAMOUSSOUKRO, Dec 25 (Reuters) - 10
By Loucoumane Coulibaly
YAMOUSSOUKRO, Dec 25 (Reuters) – 1000’s of individuals gathered for Christmas mass on the large Basilica of Our Woman of Peace in Yamoussoukro late on Thursday to mark the top of a 12 months marred by COVID-19 and a disputed election that opened deep wounds within the West African nation.
The chapel, whose towering dome is modelled after St Peter’s basilica within the Vatican, sits on the sting of Ivory Coast’s administrative capital, surrounded by flat savannah.
After dusk on Thursday, worshippers descended on the church, observing anti-virus measures, together with social distancing and hand washing earlier than attending midnight mass.
“My message throughout these Christmas festivities is to remind our pricey compatriots as soon as once more that we have now one faith, one ethnicity, which is peace, which is a platform for the progress of this nation,” stated Franck Allatin, rector of the Basilica.
The economic system of Ivory Coast, the world’s prime cocoa producer, has been hit exhausting by the coronavirus as world demand for chocolate falls and commerce slows.
President Alassane Ouattara’s choice to run for a 3rd time period in an October election sparked lethal violence alongside ethnic strains that introduced again reminiscences of a 2010-11 civil conflict through which 3,000 folks died.
In the course of the conflict, the basilica grew to become some extent of refuge for these searching for respite from battle inside its looming stained glass home windows.
“I inform myself that 2021 can be a 12 months of hope and a 12 months of peace,” stated Marius Kouassi, a instructor from Yamoussoukro who got here to have fun Christmas together with his spouse.
“That’s the reason we’re right here.”
(Modifying by Edward McAllister; Modifying by Dan Grebler)
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