| Camp 22 | |
|---|---|
| Chosŏn'gŭl | 회령 제22호 관리소 |
| Hancha | 會寧第二十二號管理所 |
| McCune–Reischauer | Hoeryŏng Che Isibi-ho Kwalliso |
| Revised Romanization | Hoeryeong Je Isipi-ho Gwalliso |
| Other name | |
| Chosŏn'gŭl | 회령 정치범 수용소 |
| Hancha | 會寧政治犯收容所 |
| McCune–Reischauer | Hoeryŏng Chŏngch'ibŏm Suyongso |
| Revised Romanization | Hoeryeong Jeongchibeum Suyongso |
Camp 22 (also known as Kwan-li-so No.22 Haengyong; Kwan-li-so is Korean for "holding place") is a North Korean prison for political prisoners and their relatives.[1] The camp is the largest concentration camp in North Korea and is thought to hold 50,000 prisoners.[1]
Contents |
According to Ahn Myong Chol, a guard at the camp between 1987 and 1994, Camp 22 was established in 1959.[2] As of today, there are an estimated 50,000 prisoners held in Camp 22.[3] Most have been imprisoned because their relatives were critical of the Korean Workers' Party or its late General Secretary, Kim Jong-Il. Analysis of satellite imagery suggests that the camp is surrounded by guarded fences. Housing is clustered in fairly small groups. Reasons for housing the prisoners in this fashion are unclear, but it could be to decrease the risk of rebellion. Most of the prison covers several square kilometers to the north and to the northeast of the main administration area.
Camp 22 is located in north-east North Korea, on the border with Russia and China, 20 km from the city of Hoeryong. The camp, the existence of which is denied by the North Korean government, carries no name on state maps. It is surrounded by the villages of Wŏn-dong, Ssŏgŭndari, Kulsal-li, Haengyŏng-ni (headquarters of the camp), Naksaeng-ni and Chungch’u-dong.
There have been numerous reports of human rights violations of prisoners at Camp 22. Accounts include the use of a glass gas chamber to observe the effects of toxic chemical experiments.[1] Activities have been revealed by a chief of management at Camp 22, Kwon Hyok.[4]
|
|
|||||||