SW News: In Muslim-majority Bangladesh where attacks on minority groups are not stray incidents, an Italian Catholic priest is working hard to promote religious harmony between Muslims and Christians. Fr. Carlo Buzzi is much respected for his social service to the poor who belong to both communities.

Fr Buzzi, who arrived in Bangladesh on January 10, 1975, four years after the South Asian country gained independence from Pakistan, was initially viewed with suspicion by the Muslims wh thought he had come to convert them to Christianity. But he won them over through constant dialogue and by helping renovate a local school. Now, both communities live in harmony because of his efforts.

Soon after his arrival in Bangladesh and after learning the Bengali language for nine months, he established 20 schools for children, set up 48 rice banks for poor farmers, 20 silk-worm cultivation and weaving centers for women, and solved around 200 cases that involved land disputes.

Fr. Buzzi served in Christ the King Church in Naogaon district and churches in the districts of Pabna, Natore, and Bogra. In every parish he served, he established a school for poor boys and girls.

In 1997, Fr. Buzzi arrived in Gulta Parish in the village of Belkuchi, comprising ethnic Garo Catholics. He built a tin shed church, naming it Sacred Heart of Jesus Church and conducted Mass and the sacraments in it.

Every Sunday, he visits Belkuchi village on his old Suzuki motorbike after riding for two hours negotiating water-filled potholes on the road. The 78-year-old missionary from the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME) has been coming to this village for 24 years every Sunday to celebrate Mass and interact with believers. He enquires about everyone's well-being and solves their problems. Even Muslims approach him for advice.

Fr. Buzz also operates four pre-primary schools for children and an education sponsorship program for adults in Sirajganj town.

In the same town, the Italian priest reclaimed a Christian cemetery illegally occupied by Muslims. He also helped with the restoration of the British-Colonial era tombstones.

Fr. Carlo Buzzi was born on April 6, 1943, in the Varese district of Italy. He was ordained a priest on December 21, 1968. Before arriving in Bangladesh, he served as a high school teacher.