The camps
Political prison camps
Known as kwanliso. Prisoners are often sent with their whole families and most never leave.
80-120k
Political prisoners
US State Department estimate, 2019. Other estimates go up to 200,000. Source
~40%
Die from malnutrition
Estimated share of camp prisoners, alongside torture, disease and accidents. Source
4
Known camps still open or listed
Camp 14 Kaechon (~15,000), Camp 15 Yodok (~50,000, listed closed), Camp 16 Hwasong (~20,000), Camp 25 Chongjin (~5,000). Source
The law
How people are punished
2014
UN: crimes against humanity
A 400-page UN Commission of Inquiry report found systematic, widespread abuses. Source
Death
For sharing foreign films
The 2020 "reactionary ideology" law punishes spreading South Korean, US or Japanese media with labour camp or execution. Source
Permit
Needed to leave your county
Travel inside the country requires official permission; leaving it without permission is severely punished. Source
Beyond its borders
Abductions
More inside North Korea
Who runs it, the military, energy, daily life and more.
Sources
Where this comes from
Figures are public estimates and may be dated - North Korea publishes almost no statistics.