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Yodok concentration camp
Yodok concentration camp (/ˈjoʊdʌk, -dɒk, -doʊk/; Korean pronunciation: [jo.dʌ̹k̚]) was a kwalliso in North Korea. The official name was Kwan-li-so (penal labour colony) No. 15. The camp was used to segregate those seen as enemies of the state, punish them for political misdemeanors, and put them to hard labour. It was closed down in 2014.
Yodok camp was about 110 km (70 mi) northeast of Pyongyang. It was located in Yodok County, South Hamgyong Province, stretching into the valley of the Ipsok River, surrounded by mountains: Paek-san 1,742 m (5,715 ft) to the north, Modo-san 1,833 m (6,014 ft) to the northwest, Tok-san 1,250 m (4,100 ft) to the west, and Byeongpung-san 1,152 m (3,780 ft) to the south. The entrance to the valley is the 1,250 m (4,100 ft) Chaebong Pass to the east. The streams from the valleys of these mountains form the Ipsok River, which flows downstream into the Yonghung River and eventually into the sea near Wonsan city.
Yodok camp had two parts:
In the 1990s, the total control zone had an estimated 30,000 prisoners while the smaller revolutionary zone had about 16,500 prisoners; later satellite images, however, indicate a significant increase in the camp's scale. Most prisoners were deported to Yodok without trial, or following unfair trials, on the basis of confessions obtained through torture. People were often imprisoned together with family members and close relatives, including small children and the elderly, based on guilt by association (Sippenhaft).
The camp was around 378 km2 (146 sq mi) in area. It was surrounded by a barbed-wire fence 3–4 m (10–13 ft) tall and walls with electric wire and watchtowers at regular intervals. The camp was patrolled by 1,000 guards with automatic rifles and guard dogs.
The prisoners lived in dusty huts with walls made of dried mud, a roof (rotten and leaking) made of straw laid on wooden planks, and a floor covered with straw and dry plant mats. In a room of around 50 m2 (540 sq ft), 30–40 prisoners slept on a bed made of a wooden board covered with a blanket. Most huts were not heated, even in winter, where temperatures are below −20 °C (−4 °F), and most prisoners got frostbite and had swollen limbs during the winter. Camp inmates also suffered from pneumonia, tuberculosis, pellagra, and other diseases, with no available medical treatment.
New prisoners received clothes that predecessors had worn until their deaths. Most clothes were dirty, worn-out, and full of holes. Prisoners had no proper shoes, socks, or gloves, and usually no spare clothes. The dead were buried naked because their possessions were taken by other prisoners. All prisoners were covered with a thick layer of dirt, as they were overworked and had almost no opportunity to wash themselves. As a result, the prisoners’ huts were foul-smelling and infested with lice, fleas, and other insects. Prisoners had to queue in front of dirty community toilets, one for every 200 prisoners, using dry leaves for cleaning.
The camp guards made prisoners report on each other and designate specific ones as foremen to control a group. If one person did not work hard enough, the whole group was punished. This created animosity among the detainees, destroyed any solidarity, and forced them to create a system of self-surveillance.
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Yodok concentration camp
Yodok concentration camp (/ˈjoʊdʌk, -dɒk, -doʊk/; Korean pronunciation: [jo.dʌ̹k̚]) was a kwalliso in North Korea. The official name was Kwan-li-so (penal labour colony) No. 15. The camp was used to segregate those seen as enemies of the state, punish them for political misdemeanors, and put them to hard labour. It was closed down in 2014.
Yodok camp was about 110 km (70 mi) northeast of Pyongyang. It was located in Yodok County, South Hamgyong Province, stretching into the valley of the Ipsok River, surrounded by mountains: Paek-san 1,742 m (5,715 ft) to the north, Modo-san 1,833 m (6,014 ft) to the northwest, Tok-san 1,250 m (4,100 ft) to the west, and Byeongpung-san 1,152 m (3,780 ft) to the south. The entrance to the valley is the 1,250 m (4,100 ft) Chaebong Pass to the east. The streams from the valleys of these mountains form the Ipsok River, which flows downstream into the Yonghung River and eventually into the sea near Wonsan city.
Yodok camp had two parts:
In the 1990s, the total control zone had an estimated 30,000 prisoners while the smaller revolutionary zone had about 16,500 prisoners; later satellite images, however, indicate a significant increase in the camp's scale. Most prisoners were deported to Yodok without trial, or following unfair trials, on the basis of confessions obtained through torture. People were often imprisoned together with family members and close relatives, including small children and the elderly, based on guilt by association (Sippenhaft).
The camp was around 378 km2 (146 sq mi) in area. It was surrounded by a barbed-wire fence 3–4 m (10–13 ft) tall and walls with electric wire and watchtowers at regular intervals. The camp was patrolled by 1,000 guards with automatic rifles and guard dogs.
The prisoners lived in dusty huts with walls made of dried mud, a roof (rotten and leaking) made of straw laid on wooden planks, and a floor covered with straw and dry plant mats. In a room of around 50 m2 (540 sq ft), 30–40 prisoners slept on a bed made of a wooden board covered with a blanket. Most huts were not heated, even in winter, where temperatures are below −20 °C (−4 °F), and most prisoners got frostbite and had swollen limbs during the winter. Camp inmates also suffered from pneumonia, tuberculosis, pellagra, and other diseases, with no available medical treatment.
New prisoners received clothes that predecessors had worn until their deaths. Most clothes were dirty, worn-out, and full of holes. Prisoners had no proper shoes, socks, or gloves, and usually no spare clothes. The dead were buried naked because their possessions were taken by other prisoners. All prisoners were covered with a thick layer of dirt, as they were overworked and had almost no opportunity to wash themselves. As a result, the prisoners’ huts were foul-smelling and infested with lice, fleas, and other insects. Prisoners had to queue in front of dirty community toilets, one for every 200 prisoners, using dry leaves for cleaning.
The camp guards made prisoners report on each other and designate specific ones as foremen to control a group. If one person did not work hard enough, the whole group was punished. This created animosity among the detainees, destroyed any solidarity, and forced them to create a system of self-surveillance.