From the Korea Times:
A delegation from the South Korean Catholic Church left for Pyongyang early Wednesday to tour regions in the North it has provided with humanitarian assistance, the Archdiocese of Seoul said.
The 61-member delegation from the Seoul archdiocese, led by Monsignor Choi Chang-hwa, will take field trips in and around Pyongyang until Saturday, it said.
“This is the first time a Catholic delegation has traveled to North Korea on such a large scale, and with laymen included,” Ma Young-ju, an archdiocese’s public relations official said.
Pyongyang sent an Air Koryo plane to Incheon International Airport to pick up the delegation, Ma said.
The Seoul archdiocese has provided food and equipment worth 11 billion won ($11.6 million) since it started assisting in the midst of a deepening food shortage in the North in 1995.
It helps operate flour factories in Nampo and Shinchon on the North’s west coast and provides 1,200 tons of flour annually, according to the archdiocese.
