Joseph Yun Li-sun

WCC Chairman Dr Olav Fykse Tveit makes the plea during a visit to the Asian country ahead of the Council's next annual meeting in November. Believers must "make life together in peace on this peninsula possible again".

Intelligence sources in Seoul, Tokyo and Washington report that the entrance to a test tunnel at the Punggye-ri site has been covered with a lead screen in order to hide the effects of testing. Meanwhile, ordinary North Koreans are at the end of their tether.

The president of the Catholic University of Korea has no doubts that artists like Psy and award-winning South Korean movie directors "are the by-product of cultural work that must be nurtured." However, "we must focus on ethics as well, training people to be competitive but also endowed with a soul."

Women are barred from cycling in many Muslim countries like Saudi Arabia and Iran. Now North Korea's Stalinist regime is doing the same, claiming that having women ride bicycles is "against Socialist morals". Offenders are liable to fines and could see their vehicle seized. Ordinary North Koreans are incensed. "Bicycles are essential," one said.

The bishops write a letter to their dioceses for Baptism of Our Lord: "The Church must return to evangelizing itself, to be able to evangelize the world again". An invitation to pastoral care of young people and rural communities, where "the ills of our time have not yet arrived."

Every day, about 43 people take their own life in the country. School- and work-related stress are among the main causes. Social alienation and grief induced by suicide in the family are other causes. South Korea has Asia's highest suicide rate. The government should "work to counter the trend," said Mgr Lazarus You Heung-sik, bishop of Daejeon. Given the country's low birth rate, "If the [high suicide] trend continues, the whole society could find itself on the edge of a cliff."

Some newspapers publish pictures showing Ri Sol-ju, dictator Kim Jong-un's wife, without signs of her pregnancy. Eric Schmidt's visit is approaching but source tells AsiaNews that it is "unfortunate," that it will be used "for its propaganda value."

The tradition halted in 2003 on the basis of a cooperation agreement between Seoul and Pyongyang. This year, the outgoing government of Lee Myung-bak grants permission: "At least the border guards will be able to enjoy a little bit of religious freedom."

For the bishop of Daejeon, the victory of conservative Park Geun-hye at the helm of South Korea "is one of the many signs of how God's [. . .] "thought" is "inscrutable." Catholic source says her election does not represent a major change. She is a woman but has no children. "When he was a dictator," her father, "was backed by half of the population."

In an election that saw one of the highest turnouts, projections indicate that the Saenuri (conservative) party candidate won 52.8 per cent of the vote. Daughter of a former dictator, she apologised for her father's methods but not for his achievements. Source tells AsiaNews that she must "choose between Beijing and Washington."

The regime shows off the embalmed body of the late 'dear leader'. State TV shows the 'royal couple' paying tribute to him. The large dress of Kim Jong-un's wife shows she is pregnant. However, such good news is countered by the fact that the satellite launched last week is not working.

Just days before the presidential election, the Bishop of Suwon calls upon the faithful to "overcome their differences in order to build a more just society. Beginning from the Social Teachings of the Church."