Canadian church wants new PM to help free pastor detained in North Korea

TORONTO, Nov 12 (Reuters) - One of Canada's largest churches
said on Thursday it wants new Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to
bring attention to the case of its pastor detained in North
Korea when he meets with Asian leaders next week in Manila.
Trudeau, who ousted the nine-year-old government of former
prime minister Stephen Harper last month, is under pressure to
advance a multitude of issues as he embarks on his first global
trip as Canada's new leader, including the case of Rev. Hyeon
Soo Lim.
Lim, head of the 3,000-member Light Korean Presbyterian
Church in Toronto, was detained during a humanitarian trip to
North Korea in February, and in July confessed to crimes aimed
at overthrowing the state.
"We are hoping that the Trudeau government takes full
advantage of whatever means and platform available - (for
example) at APEC - to bring international awareness to Mr. Lim's
detainment that would help move diplomatic talks to a speedy and
positive resolution," church spokeswoman Lisa Pak said in an
email.
The church last week sent an email to Foreign Affairs
Minister Stephane Dion to "strenuously urge the new Liberal
government to pursue all possible means to secure the immediate
release and return" of Lim.
Trudeau will meet with leaders of the Group of 20 in Turkey
this weekend before heading on to the Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC) meeting in the Philippines next week.
Canada suspended diplomatic relations with Pyongyang in
2010, making progress on Lim's case difficult.
A spokesman for Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs said
consular officials are in contact with Lim's family and Canada
remains "deeply concerned" with the case.
"We continue to advocate for consular access and for a
resolution in his case," spokesman Francois Lasalle said in an
email.
In July, Lim appeared at a news conference in North Korea
and confessed that he had traveled to North Korea in the guise
of humanitarian work and gathered information that he used in
sermons outside the country in a bid to drive the regime to a
collapse "with the love of God."
The church has said South Korean-born Lim has visited North
Korea more than 100 times since 1997 and has helped establish an
orphanage and a nursing home there. He has lived in Canada since
1986 and is a Canadian citizen.
Both North Korea and China have clamped down on Christian
groups over the past year, and several American Christians have
been detained by North Korea.