( CNN ) -- A 75-year-old Australian missionary who traveled to North Korea as part of a tour group has been detained there , his wife said . John Short had with him some Gospel tracts in Korean `` which seem to be at the core of the detention , '' his wife said in a statement Wednesday . `` It is alleged he is being asked questions such as , 'Who sent you ? ' , 'To what organization do you belong ? ' , 'Who translated this material into Korean ? ' '' his wife , Karen Short , said . North Korea has n't so far commented on the reported detention . Short , who lives in Hong Kong , went to Pyongyang on Saturday . The next night , police questioned him at his hotel and took him into custody , according to the statement . His family found out about the detention only after another member of the group returned to China on Tuesday . `` He has been the only source of information , '' the wife 's statement said . Short has been arrested multiple times while doing evangelical work in China `` for speaking out about brutality against Chinese Christians , '' according to a biography on a religious website named Gospel Attract . In the 1990s , he became `` persona non grata '' with Chinese authorities for almost two years and was unable to visit mainland China , the biography said . The Australian consulate in Hong Kong said the Australian government is aware of the report . Since Australia does not have diplomatic relations with North Korea , the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang is handling representations on its behalf . Last year , North Korea sentenced Kenneth Bae , a Korean-American , to 15 years of hard labor on charges he planned to topple the government through religious activities . Washington has repeatedly called on Pyongyang to release Bae , expressing concerns about his health . But Kim Jong Un 's regime has so far refused to budge . Bae , 45 , was widely reported to have been carrying out missionary work in North Korea . His family says he ran a company specializing in tours of the secretive country . North Korea has a number of state-controlled churches , but the authoritarian Communist regime does n't tolerate independent religious activities . The regime `` considers the spread of Christianity a particularly serious threat , since it challenges ideologically the official personality cult and provides a platform for social and political organization and interaction outside the realm of the state , '' a United Nations panel said in a report released this week . `` People caught practicing Christianity are subject to severe punishments in violation of the right to freedom of religion and the prohibition of religious discrimination , '' the report by the United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in North Korea said . CNN 's Tim Schwarz , Jethro Mullen and Chieu Luu contributed to this report .
John Short , 75 , had with him some Gospel tracts , his wife says . The Australian government says it is aware of reports of his detention . North Korea is already holding a Korean-American reported to have done missionary work . The secretive regime does n't tolerate independent religious activities .