Pope Francis Arena Opens in Liberia's Central Prison

The Pope Francis Arena Opens
in Liberia’s Central Prison

(ANS – Monrovia, Liberia – July 2, 2024) – There was great joy at the solemnity of the Sts. Peter and Paul, June 29, in the Central Prison in Monrovia, Liberia’s capital. The time without a sports facility is finally over. Thanks to the Salesians of Don Bosco, the multifunctional sports facility was built in the middle of the prison within 6 months. On this occasion, the festival community first met in the prison chapel to celebrate the Eucharist.

The apostolic nuncio for Liberia, Sierra Leone, and The Gambia, Abp. Walter Erbi, opened and then blessed the new sports facility. This was followed by the first team games in soccer, basketball, and volleyball. After the award ceremony, the square became a dance floor. Local music bands played and let the neighbors adjacent to the prison feel the joy of the inmates about the new arena.

Financier Peter Friemel from Germany initially moved himself: for years he has been getting on his bicycle and collecting money from sponsors and donors on his tours. The 85-year-old has already racked up a whopping €200,000. Finally, the director of the Salesian community in Monrovia, Fr. Augustine Okeke, gave an appraisal to the provincial of Anglophone North Province, Fr. Denis Soro, for his great support and encouragement to the Salesians working inside the prison.

The Monrovia Central Prison is constantly overcrowded due to the slow and sluggish work of the judiciary. While the prison was built for 325 inmates, today there are over 1,500 prisoners crammed into the narrow cells. Overcrowding in the central prison leads to a lack of food and water, a lack of hygiene standards, and a lack of psycho-social support. These in turn lead to increased aggression and frustration among prisoners, resulting in physical and mental illnesses and injuries (skin diseases, malnutrition, depression, etc.). There were no opportunities to play sports in the narrow area. Now, the new arena is primarily intended to promote sport and with that health.

The Salesians have been working in the social-pastoral area in prison since they arrived in the West African country in 1979. Today, they work in the prison every day from morning to evening with a diverse program. The malnourished receive a warm and nutritious meal, the sick receive medical assistance, children and young prisoners receive psycho-social care in a specially built living area, and those wrongly held prisoner receive free legal assistance from lawyers. What is particularly important, however, is the pastoral offering, which is strongly geared to the situation and needs of the prisoners: individual and group discussions, Bible lessons, the sacraments of the Eucharist and confession, as well as ecumenical prayer times.