Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Seoul (Agenzia Fides) – Caritas Korea, the entire network of Caritas Internationalis and the Council of NGOs in Korea have made a united appeal to the government of South Korea for humanitarian aid to the North to resume. The government of Seoul appeared possibilist and promised to “find ways to reactivate humanitarian channels, although it will take time because several obstacles must be overcome ”: Fides learned from the head of Caritas Korea who took part in two public conferences on the question of united aid to North Korea.
During the first meeting Lesley-Anne Knight, secretary general of Caritas Internationalis, made a new appeal “for humanitarian aid to resume despite the political tension between the two Koreas”. “We are deeply concerned”, she said calling for “greater international attention for the present humanitarian crisis in North Korea”. “We cannot forget those brothers and sisters who lack the means necessary for survival, especially the elderly, the children and the sick”, she said.
For his part, the Director of Caritas Korea, Fr. Francis Jung, told Fides: “We support this appeal to the government of Seoul. We ask permission to continue our programmes of humanitarian assistance and cooperation for the North”. The Director recalled that in recent months Caritas launched a campaign to vaccinate more than 500,000 North Korean children aged between 6 and 16 years against hepatitis B. “The campaign which we hoped to extend to 3 million children has been stopped, the government has closed all channels of communication and transport”.
The campaign for humanitarian aid has the support of the Council of Korean NGOs for Cooperation with the North, which brings together NGOs of all kinds and inspiration including Caritas Korea. Fides was told that the NGOs which yesterday expressed their requests at another public conference, intend “to sensitise public opinion regarding the urgency of resuming programmes of cooperation for the good of the entire people and the whole of the Korean peninsula ”, in the hope that “humanitarian channels will help reduce political tensions ”. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 23/6/2010)
