Paul KeenanA Christian missionary detained in North Korea last year has apparently confessed to spying on the pariah state.
Kim Jeong–Wook, a Baptist minister from South Korea, was last reported on the border of the North and China before he was detained and disappeared.
Last week, during a television broadcast from the North, the minister appeared and made a statement in which he admitted seeking the overthrow of the North’s regime at the behest of the South’s secret service.
“I am sorry for my actions and I call on the authorities to have mercy on me,” Kim states before adding, “I have not been mistreated in prison”.
Spying
In addition to his spying ‘confession’, Kim states that he has worked to set up an underground church in China.
Kim’s appearance has served to refocus attention on the dangers facing anyone seeking to enter North Korea, not least those affiliated to a religious group or Church. In November, American Kenneth Bae was detained and sentenced to 15 years for seeking to overthrow the government as he distributed religious leaflets, while Australian missionary John Short was arrested on February 16 and has been deported.