Fr. Anthony Humer Pinto, the newly installed superior of the vice province of Sri Lanka, signed a contract for Murunkan with His Lordship Joseph Rayappu, Bishop of Mannar, at the National Shrine of Our Lady of Madhu, in the presence of the provincials of Chennai, Trichy and Mumbai, Fr. Thomas Panakezham, former Regional Councillor for Australia-Asia, Fr. Benjamin Puthota, former provincial delegate for Sri Lanka, and several former provincials of Chennai.
Madhu is an ancient Shrine situated in the
midst of a forest in what is now an LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam)
controlled area. To reach the shrine, the Salesians had to undergo passport
formalities at the Sri Lankan checkpost and once again
at the LTTE checkpost, after passing through no-man’s
land. This has been possible for several years now, thanks to the accord reached
between the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE forces. Many in
After the signing of the contract, the Salesians proceeded to Murunkan for the official welcome and reception.
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