Vatican City ( AsiaNews) Today the Vatican called on Beijing to reveal charges against mons. Wei Jingyi, an unofficial Catholic bishop who was detained by Chinese authorities last week. News of his arrest surfaced yesterday (see AsiaNews web site). This morning, the Holy See spokesman Mr Joaquin Navarro-Valls, issued a public statement saying:
"Worried and saddened the Holy See has learned from international agencies the news of the arrest of a Catholic bishop in the region of Heilongjiang, China.
Whatever the accusations are against the bishop, they should be made public, as happens in any lawful state. The Holy See, for its part, has no reason to doubt the innocence of the bishop".
This is the first time, in many years, that the Holy See let its voice be heard concerning bishops and faithful persecuted in China.