Narváez was a member of the Swiss congregation of the Franciscan Sisters of Mary Immaculate.
The Colombian nun Gloria Cecilia Narváez, released in October after four years of captivity in the hands of jihadists in Mali, returned to her country on Tuesday.
“Welcome, welcome, our heart welcomes you,” sang in unison a dozen religious who were waiting for her at the El Dorado airport in Bogotá, while Sister Gloria hugged each one of them.
The 59-year-old woman, a native of the department of Nariño (southwest), was abducted on February 7, 2017 near the town of Koutiala, 400 kilometers east of Bamako, the capital of Mali. At the time, I was working as a missionary in the Karangasso parish.
“The Lord gave me the joy of having brothers and sisters (…) I thank you with all my heart,” said the nun, moved in the midst of a score of nuns and policemen. Some of them displayed signs that read “We await you with joy” and “Welcome to freedom.”
Released on October 9 by her captors, Narváez was a member of the Swiss congregation of the Franciscan Sisters of Mary Immaculate, born in 1893 in Colombia and with a presence in 17 countries.
“Your strength amazes me (…) you in that inclement desert, what I have is admiration,” confessed Colonel Gustavo Camargo, deputy director of the anti-kidnapping police who was in Mali to press for his release.
Originally from a country punished by kidnapping in the midst of an armed conflict of more than half a century, Narváez advocated for the victims of this scourge.
“I was thinking of all the sufferings that people go through when they are kidnapped right here in Colombia, in the whole world, there in Mali, how many people still remain,” lamented the nun.
Narváez’s mother passed away in September 2020 awaiting the release of her daughter.
Kidnappings are also common in Mali, mired in a serious security crisis, especially in the center of the country, one of the hotbeds of jihadist violence.
Since March 2012, several areas have been in the hands of groups linked to the Al Qaida network.
Before returning to Colombia, the nun visited Pope Francis at the Vatican. (I)
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