A Canadian pastor held in North Korea for the past two years have been released on "sick bail," in large part due to the efforts of the Canadian government. According to Reuters:
"The country’s official KCNA news agency said on Wednesday that Rim Hyon Su, a Canadian civilian, was released on sick bail according to the decision of the Central Court of the DPRK on August 9, 2017, from the humanitarian viewpoint,” it said, using the country’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea."
Prior to being imprisoned for "threats to overthrow the regime," the pastor, who is also known as Hyeon Soo Lim, had traveled to North Korea over 100 times since 1997 in order to set up an orphanage and nursing home, according to his Toronto-based church.
Lim was sentenced in December 2015 to lifelong hard labor for his alleged attempts to "overthrow the regime." Last year, he spoke to CNN about his experience:
"Lim told CNN he spends eight hours a day digging holes at a labor camp where he has not seen any other prisoners."
Lim was released on humanitarian grounds.