Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Seoul (Agenzia Fides) - Caritas Korea, sponsored by the Korean Bishops’ Conference is now the official referent for humanitarian aid to North Korea with regard to programmes undertaken by Caritas Internationalis.
Bishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik, president of the Bishops’ Commission for Caritas, who just returned from a visit to North Korea said: “We were sent by Caritas Internationalis to Pyongyang to discuss programmes of development and cooperation with Mr Kim Seong-il, vice president the national committee for economic cooperation”. According to the agreement reached in 2007 Caritas Korea will take charge of co-ordinating and transferring humanitarian aid to N. Korea. A job done hitherto by Caritas Hong Kong.
This means, said Fr. Paul Jeremiah Hwang Yong-yeon, secretary of the Commission for Caritas, “that N/ Korea recognises Caritas Korea as the new channel for relations with Caritas Internationalis”, a task undertaken by Caritas di Hong Kong in the 1990s
Now the Church in south Korea looks with new hope and optimism to the North as there have been many signs pointing to a new season of dialogue and better North/South relations.
A Catholic delegation from the archdiocese of Seoul visited the North in April to visit healthcare centres, and view social and farm projects to see how 11 million dollars sent from the Church in the South were being used.
This latest visit of a Catholic delegation to the North confirms that N. Korean authorities are anxious to improve relations and willing to keep the humanitarian channel open with S. Korea. Recently to address persisting conditions of poverty and hunger N. Korea accepted a programme of international aid to feed about 2 million people. (Agenzia Fides 9/6/2006 righe: 29 parole: 297)
