内容摘要：Hayley Clark from East Riding Libraries said the county was "so lucky to have such brilliant local authors" and she was excited to be involved in the events.

Hayley Clark from East Riding Libraries said the county was "so lucky to have such brilliant local authors" and she was excited to be involved in the events.

It's a dramatic reversal of fortunes for the 61-year-old, who at the time of Yoon's martial law declaration stood convicted of making false statements during his last presidential campaign in 2022.Those charges still cast a long shadow over Lee, and could yet threaten his years-long pursuit of the top job. But they are also just the latest in a string of controversies that have dogged him throughout his political career.

A rags-to-riches origin story combined with a bullish political style has made Lee into a divisive figure in South Korea."Lee Jae-myung's life has been full of ups and downs, and he often takes actions that stir controversy," Dr Lee Jun-han, professor of political science and international studies at Incheon National University, tells the BBC.These actions typically include attempts at progressive reform – such as a pledge, made during his 2022 presidential campaign, to implement universal basic income scheme – which challenge the existing power structure and status quo in South Korea.

"Because of this, some people strongly support him, while others distrust or dislike him," Dr Lee says. "He is a highly controversial and unconventional figure – very much an outsider who has made a name for himself in a way that doesn't fit traditional Democratic Party norms."In a recent memoir, Lee described his childhood as "miserable". Born in 1963 in a mountain village in Andong, Gyeongbuk Province, he was the fifth of five sons and two daughters, and - due to his family's difficult circumstances - skipped middle school to illegally enter the workforce.

As a young factory worker, Lee suffered an industrial accident where his fingers got caught in a factory power belt, and at the age of 13 suffered a permanent injury to his arm after his wrist was crushed by a press machine.

Lee later applied for and was allowed to sit entrance exams for high school and university, passing in 1978 and 1980 respectively. He went on to study law with a full scholarship, and passed the Bar Examination in 1986.The British broadcaster said on Monday that its BBC Persian journalists were witnessing "a disturbing rise in the persecution of their family members".

People had endured random interrogations, travel bans, passport confiscations and asset seizure threats, it said.Staff - both in the UK and elsewhere - had not been able to return to Iran, and had also been directly targeted with violence and threats aimed at pressuring them to abandon their work, the BBC said.

"We call on the Iranian authorities to immediately cease this campaign of intimidation," the BBC's director general Tim Davie said in a statement on Monday.Tehran is yet to respond to the latest allegations from the BBC. The Iranian regime has previously been accused of conducting unlawful operations against journalists abroad.