Thousands sign petition calling for release of Canadian pastor sentenced to life in North Korea

In December, a Canadian pastor was sentenced to life imprisonment in North Korea, prompting several Christian groups to call for aid from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and even the United Nations.

Rev. Hyeon Soo Lim, who is in his early 60s, is a Canadian-Korean pastor from the Light Korean Presbyterian Church in Toronto, and had been very involved in mission work in North Korea.

According to a report by The Guardian, Rev. Lim has been in and out of North Korea about 100 times, and his goal each time had been to help people in need.

However, the North Korean government accused Lim that he was gaining political influence from the people.

In January last year, Pastor Lim went again to North Korea for a regular humanitarian mission to visit the nursing home, nursery and orphanage he had been supporting, but was arrested in February, and since then has been detained in North Korea.

In August, a video was released showing Pastor Lim who appears to read a script in front of a crowd in Pongsu Church, the state-operated church in Pyongyang.

"The worst crime I committed was to rashly defame and insult the highest dignity and the system of the republic," he said in the video.

However, the report believes that he might have been forced to do it, just like what other North Korean prisoners had done in the past.

Meanwhile, an online petition calling for the freedom of the Canadian pastor has been gaining traction. The petition calls for 150,000 people to show their support in calling for action by the Canadian government, as well as the United Nations to free the Christian missionary. More than 125,000 people have already signed. 

In 2014, another Christian missionary, Korean American Kenneth Bae, was released by North Korea while he was serving a 15-year sentence.