Union of Presentation
Sisters in Ministry
This is Nuala Mottley
(left), Justice Contact for the UK Province,
and Imelda Carew, Justice Contact for the
Ireland SE Province, at the Human Rights
Commission meeting in Geneva in March 2004.
Click here for their report of the
meeting.
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Mary Tait (second from right
at back) of the New Zealand Vice Province writes:
“This group of solo mums meet in the neighbouring parish
of St Bernadette’s, Naenae each Monday
afternoon in one of their homes. It is a time of sharing and
praying together about what is going on in their lives and
the world around them.The group was originally formed over
twenty years ago when I was doing parish ministry there. As
you can imagine, the group has changed over the years but
still welcomes anyone who comes along. There is no need for
me to be present, but it is a meeting I try not to miss going
along to." |
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This photo was
taken during the protest at the meeting of G7 leaders in Cologne,
Germany in June 1999 - the year 17 million people worldwide
signed the Jubilee 2000 petition for debt cancellation. Mary
Salmon (Little Sisters of the Assumption) and Presentations
Eileen Adams and Maureen O'Connell,
all from Ireland, are where 850,000 people
signed the petition. Three bus-loads of Irish supporters travelled
to Cologne where the 17mn signatures were presented to the
G7. While the G7 capitulated by giving a further $14 billion
for debt relief, the total outstanding debt of the lowest
income countries was, at that time, well over $200 billion. |
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 This
photograph was taken at Kabanga, in the western
province, which is one of our rural missions in Zambia.
Presentation Sister Inez Fernandes works with the
people here.
From left, Bo Ma Pumulo, Presentations
Bella Vedamuthu and Maureen Miley are
seen at an open well drawing water for the celebration of the opening
of the Nano Nagle Centre.
"Since water is a big need in the area we tried to get some
funds from our Sisters to line open wells which promote clean and
safe drinking water. Until this time people used shallow wells which
were not safe; sometimes even animals drank from the same source.
We have lined 15 wells so far and 10 more are in the process. The
open wells are comparatively cheaper to line and have a longer life
span.
Our ministry here is to work with women, children, HIV/AIDS orphans
and widows to be self-sustainable. We promote the above through
Development Education Program by:
- Empowering women and youth through leadership skills
- Self sustainable projects like chicken rearing, fish and pig
farming
- Agricultural sector by sensitising people to grow drought-resistant
crops, doing organic farming, conservation farming, making compost,
food processing
- Human rights, e.g. re Child defilement
- Health care and nutrition."
 Pictured
to the right is Presentation Sister Norris Nawab
(far right) working with a group of women in Pakistan.
Activities carried out by the Sisters and their staff include:
- Empowering women to stand up for their rights - 30 women have
been trained and 66 groups with 1,023 members have been formed
throughout the country.
- Helping workers to move towards unionisation in order to empower
them to get their rights and assisting them to get legal aid.
- Being involved in peace activities and working in collaboration
with church organisations and with like-minded Muslim organisations.
Norris has come to see that justice and peace workers' focus is
to work for a just society where every human being could equally
enjoy rights and respect in society, regardless of his/her caste,
creed, gender or ethnicity. Norris is engaged in promoting human
rights, especially for religious minorities, women and labourers
in Pakistan.
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Nuala Mottley
of the UK Province is pictured here (second
from left) with the Justice and Peace Commission in Manchester,
England. |
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