World Prisons
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Korea, Democratic People's Republic of

Hwasong concentration camp

Low
Verified 28 May 2026
Fresh · 1d ago

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How to send mail, money, and visit Hwasong concentration camp

Step-by-step guidance using the Korea, Democratic People's Republic of system — addresses, money services, visit booking, what to bring on your first visit.

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Background

Kwan-li-so (Penal-labor Colony) No. 16 Hwasong (Chosŏn'gŭl: 화성 제16호 관리소), often known outside North Korea as the Hwasong concentration camp (Hangul: 화성 정치범수용소; also spelled Hwasŏng or Hwaseong), is the largest political labor camp (kwalliso) in North Korea. Located in rural North Hamgyong Province, Hwasong is highly secretive and isolated from the rest of the country. Prisoners, usually imprisoned for life, are subject to harsh forced labor and treatment. The estimated prisoner population size is 20,000.

Source: Wikipedia article lead, CC-BY-SA.

Capacity

Current population

Occupancy

Year opened

Operational

Facility profile

Operator

국가보위성 농장감시국

Population held

Mixed/unknown

Opened

Region

Security level

Death-row facility

No

Conditions

No conditions summary available yet.

Visiting

No visiting information available.

Mailing

No mailing information available.

Practical info

Contact the operator's website for inmate-specific procedures.

Known issues

No major issues documented in our database.

Contact & address

No public contact details available.

Conditions Risk Score

Derived signal — not a judgement. How it's calculated

Insufficient data
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Data completeness

20%

How many of our profile fields are populated. We surface this so families and researchers know the limits.

Sources