Pastor imprisoned in North Korea meets ambassador
A Canadian pastor serving a life sentence in North Korea has been allowed to meet with the Swedish ambassador in Pyongyang and telephone his family.
Hyeon Soo Lim, a pastor with the Light Korean Presbyterian Church of Mississauga, Ont., was sentenced in December 2015 by a North Korean court to life in prison with hard labour for what it called crimes against the state.
Swedish Ambassador Torkel Stiernlof said he met Lim for 40 minutes last week. He said they discussed Lim’s health and other matters, but refused to comment further.
The ambassador said in an email to The Associated Press on Wednesday that he and Lim “weren’t rushed.”
He said there were two North Korean officials in civilian clothes and an official photographer present throughout the meeting, which was held in a conference room at a Pyongyang hotel.
“He was escorted in and out of the room without handcuffs by uniformed guards,” Stiernlof said. “We discussed his health and other things, of course, but I refrain from commenting on these matters.”
He said Lim spoke over the phone with his family last Friday.
Lim’s family confirmed the call but wouldn’t provide details of the conversation.
“We would like to extend our deepest gratitude to Swedish Ambassador Torkel Stiernlof for representing the Canadian government in Pyongyang and helping make this meaningful phone call happen,” the family said in a statement.
“We take this as an encouraging sign that diplomatic efforts are bearing fruit and we hope to see Reverend Lim return home as soon as possible.”
It was unclear why the meeting between Lim and Stiernlof was arranged at this time.
North Korea claims such meetings are granted for humanitarian reasons, but Pyongyang has been accused of using foreign detainees as a way to win political concessions or high-level visits from other countries.
Lim, who is in his 60s, was convicted and sentenced on charges of trying to use religion to destroy the North Korean system and helping U.S. and South Korean authorities lure and abduct North Korean citizens.