Camp 22

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Camp 22 is a North Korean prison for political prisoners, who are in fact family members of accused North Koreans. Camp 22 is known as: Kwan-li-so No.22 Haengyong. 'Kwan-li-so' stands for 'education'. It is located in north-east North Korea, on the border with Russia and China, 20 km from the city of Hoeryong. On all available maps the camp carries no name like villages. This camp is surrounded by the following villages: Wŏn-dong, Ssŏgŭndari, Kulsal-li, Haengyŏng-ni (headquarters of the camp), Naksaeng-ni and Chungch’u-dong. Its location is: 42°34'29"N, 129°53'3"E. Its existence is denied by the North Korean government.

1 Overview
2 Alleged abuse
3 See also
4 References

[edit] Overview

There are an estimated 50,000 prisoners held in Camp 22^{[citation needed]}. Most have been imprisoned because relatives were critical of the Korean Workers' Party or its General Secretary, Kim Jong-il. Analysis of satellite imagery suggests that the camp is surrounded by guarded fences, and that it covers an area estimated to be as large as Washington, D.C.. Housing is clustered in fairly small groups. Reasons for housing the prisoners in this fashion are unclear, but could be to decrease the risk of rebellion.[1]

[edit] Alleged abuse

There have been numerous reports of human rights abuses at Camp 22. There have even been accounts of chemical experimentation on prisoners using a glass gas chamber for observation. Some accounts have even been attributed to a former chief of management at Camp 22, Kwon Hyok.