Religion Buddhist Political party Democratic Party | Role Political leader Name Lim Su-kyung | |
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Constituency Proportional Representation №21 Movies Sympathy for Lady Vengeance Profiles | ||
Parents Kim Jeong-eun, Lim Pan-ho | ||
Lim Su-kyung (also spelled as Lim Soo-kyung; Hangul: 임수경, 림수경; Hanja: 林秀卿; born 6 November 1968) is a South Korean activist and politician. She is best known for attending the 13th World Festival of Youth and Students, held in North Korea and praising North Korean leader Kim Il Sung in 1989, without first obtaining permission from the South Korean government. She attended the festival representing the student organization Jeondaehyop, now known as Hanchongryun. Upon her return to South Korea, she was arrested and sentenced to 5 years' imprisonment.
Activism and political career
Lim was given the nickname Flower of Unification or Flower of Reunification (Hangul: 통일의 꽃) by the North Korean government after she visited Pyongyang. She was arrested on charges of violating the National Security Act after she returned to the South through Panmunjom.
She was sentenced to prison for a term of 5 years, but served 2 years and six months before her release on good behavior. She was pardoned in 1999 by South Korean President Kim Dae-jung. Lim claims that her attendance at the Festival was a purely selfless act.
In April 2012, she was elected as a member of the 19th National Assembly as the Democratic United Party's 21st proportional representative.
In June 2012, Lim made remarks that were derogatory towards North Korean defectors, referring to one of them as a "son-of-a-bitch betrayer" and another as a "traitor" in what has been described by Korea JoonAng Daily as "an alcohol-fueled tirade at a Seoul restaurant", questioning their legitimacy to challenge her as a lawmaker. This led to public protests.
The Argentinian filmmaker José Luis García made the 2012 documentary La chica del sur ("The Girl From the South"), focusing on Lim, as well as his experience participating in the 13th World Festival of Youth and Students, where he met her. The film shows Lim's struggle for a united Korea in 1989, and two further reunions between her and Garcia in South Korea and Argentina in 2012. La chica del sur tries to show the development of her thoughts and character after years of media attention, prison, the death of her son and divorce. It was shown and awarded in the Buenos Aires International Independent Film Festival (BAFICI) 2012 and Lakino festival 2013. In 2014 the documentary was awarded the Argentine Film Critics Association Silver Condor (Cóndor de Plata) for Best Documentary.