Family of Canadian pastor jailed in North Korea calls for more government action following Otto Warmbier's death

The family of a Canadian pastor imprisoned in North Korea has raised concerns about his welfare and calls on the government to secure his release following the death of American student Otto Warmbier.

Hyeon Soo Lim, a pastor with the Light Korean Presbyterian Church west of Toronto, has been sentenced to life imprisonment with hard labor in North Korea after he was convicted of attempting to destroy the North Korean system through the use of religion.

Lim's family is now calling on the Canadian government to take a more aggressive approach to secure his release following the death of Warmbier, a 22-year-old American university student who was recently released by North Korea in a comatose state.

"The family is very concerned at this point," said Lisa Pak, a spokeswoman for the family, according to Reuters. "They are hoping the Canadian government will turn (efforts) up a few notches in terms of active diplomacy and really start engaging," she added.

The pastor's family has issued a statement expressing condolences to Warmbier's relatives, saying no families should go through such an ordeal.

Pak said that there have been no substantial developments in Lim's case since December 2016, when the pastor was visited by Canadian officials. The spokeswoman further noted that the family has not received any updates about Lim's whereabouts and condition for months.

"The last time we have had any information is when the Swedish ambassador visited there in February," Pak noted.

Lim was able to speak to his wife and son using the Swedish diplomat's phone during the visit, but Pak said there had been no communications between the pastor and the family since then.

The news about Warmbier's release initially gave the family some hope, but they are now fearing the worst after they heard that the student had died.

"They thought it was good news. Then came word he was in a coma and then died. It devastated Rev. Lim's family," the spokeswoman recounted.

The family is now calling on the Canadian government to "place more attention" on the case of the jailed pastor.

"We are desperate to see our husband and father home, and we are pleading for an active escalation in diplomatic efforts," the family said in a statement issued on Wednesday.

Lim's relatives and colleagues said that the pastor had made more than 100 trips to North Korea since 1997 and that he traveled to the country in January 2014 as part of a humanitarian mission to support a nursing home, a nursery and an orphanage.