Church Leaders Plea for Peace in Korea

INCHEON, South Korea, NOV. 24, 2010 (Zenit.org).- Church leaders in South Korea are calling for peace on the peninsula after Tuesday's artillery attack by the North on the island of Yeonpyeong.

Father Johannes Kim Yong-hwan, chancellor of the Diocese of Incheon, which covers Yeonpyeong, asserted that relations between the North and South have worsened under current South Korean government.

He called on South Korea to "introduce dialogue and embrace the North,” according to UCANews.

Father Kim noted his concern for residents of the island, some 450 of whom are Catholic.

Four people were killed in Tuesday's attack, and at least 18 people, most of them troops, were injured.

Father Baptist John Kim Hun-il, executive secretary of the Subcommittee for Aid to North Korea under the Korean bishops’ committee for reconciliation, called on the North to avoid any future attacks.

"Aiming at civilians and civil houses is inhumane and it can cause further tragedy in the Korean peninsula,” Father Kim said, urging South Korea to avoid return fire and to foster dialogue with the North.