The Vatican has strongly protested to China over the arrest of three Roman Catholic bishops - one of them 84 years old - in the past month. A strongly-worded statement demanded an explanation from China, which has long sought to control religious expression.
Its millions of Catholics are split between followers of Pope John Paul II and members of a state-backed church. The Vatican and China have had no diplomatic ties since the 1950s, when Beijing expelled foreign clergy.
BBC religious affairs correspondent Jane Little says the Vatican response indicates it has lost patience with China.
It called the bishops' arrest "inconceivable in a country based on laws".
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3833861.stm
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