A pastor has been jailed for life with hard labour for allegedly plotting to overthrow North Korean tyrant Kim Jong-un .
Hyeon
Soo Lim, 60, also admitted wanting to set up a religious state in a
televised confession similar to others involving missionaries.
Mr
Lim, a Canadian, born in South Korea and based in Toronto, was arrested
in Pyongyang in January as he arrived to carry out humanitarian work.
He
now faces the nightmare of spending the rest of his life behind bars
for committing ‘crimes’ to overthrow dictator Kim, and undermine his
Government..
His family said he had visited North Korea for 20 years and was on a mission to help a nursing home, nursery and orphanage.
Mr Lim was shown at a news conference after apparently ‘confessing’ to a plot to set up a religious state.
Mr Lim, who cut a sorry figure as he was paraded before the cameras,
was sentenced after a 90-minute trial at the North Korean Supreme Court.
He
was convicted of joining the US and South Korea in an anti-North Korea
human rights “racket” and fabricating and circulating false propaganda
designed to tarnish the country’s image.
He was accused of funding and helping “defectors”
to escape, in some cases through Mongolia. The pastor entered and left
the court in handcuffs flanked by two state security officers in
uniform.
Head bowed, he answered questions put to him in court in a subdued tone.
