N. Korea frees pastor on medical parole
Print Edition
A CANADIAN pastor serving a life sentence with hard labor in North Korea was released yesterday on medical parole as a humanitarian gesture, the official KCNA news agency said.
Hyeon Soo Lim, 61, was freed on “sick bail,” the agency announced after a Canadian government delegation arrived in Pyongyang to discuss the case.
A court ordered Lim’s release “from the humanitarian viewpoint,” it said in a brief two-paragraph report.
Lim was arrested in 2015 for allegedly meddling in North Korean state affairs.
The South Korean-born pastor had been accused of subversive acts against Pyongyang, an allegation which Canadian authorities strongly denied.
A Canadian delegation including national security adviser Daniel Jean visited Pyongyang this week to discuss the case.
“Pastor Lim’s health and well-being remain of utmost importance to the government of Canada as we continue to engage on this case,” said Cameron Ahmad, a spokesman for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in Ottawa before the release.
Lim’s family told local media they had become increasingly worried about his welfare since the death of American student Otto Warmbier in June, just days after he had been released from a North Korean prison.
Three US citizens remain in custody as relations with Washington worsen sharply.
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