Daily NK has obtained a photo of a work site at a North Korean detention facility where wigs are manufactured under contract. The photo clearly shows the reality of forced labor in North Korea’s prisons.
In the photo, a wig sits on top of a plastic bottle at the work site. The bare concrete floor is covered with linoleum, burlap or plastic sheeting, and there’s no proper work desk in sight. The cracked wall and artificial hair scattered in a gourd bowl paint a stark picture of the awful conditions at this prison work site.
North Korean authorities are reportedly ramping up contract manufacturing using forced prison labor, despite these terrible working conditions. According to a source in North Pyongan province, prisoners at detention facilities like forced labor camps in Yonchon and Yomju counties are producing far more contracted items than before, with some working over 12 hours a day.
Contract manufacturing in detention facilities usually involves simple tasks that don’t require special skills, like making wigs or fake eyelashes and knitting. Prisons have dedicated contract manufacturing work teams made up of young prisoners who are good with their hands.
Prisoners actually prefer being on contract manufacturing teams because they don’t have to do hard physical labor and sometimes get special food.
“Other forced laborers are jealous of the people who get onto the contract manufacturing teams,” the source said. “If they finish their assigned work for the week without any defects, they get rice at lunch on Sunday.”
“Workers sometimes have to work all night if they can’t finish their quota or if they make defective products, but prisoners still think making wigs all day is way better than doing construction work, getting dragged into outdoor work mobilizations, or running around holding apology signs and shouting slogans in front of people,” he added.
“Places of humiliation”
Labor camps are detention facilities for people who’ve committed relatively minor offenses like skipping work or not participating in organizational activities. Inmates at these camps are forced to humiliate themselves through self-criticism and reading apology letters out loud in public places, supposedly to improve their attitudes.
Because of this, people see labor camps as “places of humiliation.” Since inmates on contract manufacturing teams spend all day inside, away from the outside world, many prefer this assignment even if they have to work more than 12 hours a day.
Labor camps deliberately try to keep more inmates who are skilled with their hands so they can produce more products that bring in foreign currency using free labor.
“People who can afford to pay bribes get released early, while people without money or connections get sent to labor camps. And the better a prisoner is with their hands, the more exhausted they become,” the source said. “If you can’t work, you have to do extra tasks, but it’s also a problem if you work too well.”
