Abuse of power & retaliationHuman trafficking

North Korea ran forced-labor prison camps and pocketed the wages of workers sent abroad, US and allies find.

Confidence: Confirmed · 4 sourcesNorth Korea · Oct 12, 2026

Subject of this story

Government of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea

Also named

Oversight

US Department of State

Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team (MSMT)

What happened

The State Department's 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report found 'a government policy or pattern of human trafficking in political prison camps and "labor training centers" as part of an established system of political repression, in the mass mobilizations of adults and children, and in the imposition of forced labor conditions on North Korean workers overseas,' adding the government 'used proceeds from state-sponsored forced labor to fund government operations.' A September 16, 2026 joint statement from the 11-nation Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team found 35,600-101,280 North Korean workers remain deployed abroad (mainly China and Russia), that 80-90% of their wages are confiscated by Pyongyang, and that the program generated $450-800 million in 2025 to fund nuclear and missile programs, in violation of UN Security Council resolutions. North Korea's Foreign Ministry publicly dismissed the MSMT findings as fabrication.

Sources (4)

U.S. Department of State - 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report: Democratic People's Republic of KoreaDuring the reporting period there was a government policy or pattern of human trafficking in political prison camps and 'labor training centers'... The government used proceeds from state-sponsored forced labor to fund government operations.

NK NewsUS names North Korea one of world's worst human traffickers for 23rd year... The government did not demonstrate any meaningful efforts to address human trafficking.

U.S. Department of State - Joint Statement of the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team (MSMT)Nearly all of the wages earned by overseas North Korean labourers are confiscated by the DPRK... Confiscation rates reach 80-90 percent of wages; some workers become indebted to Pyongyang.

NBC NewsNorth Korea's Foreign Ministry dismissed findings from the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team... describing its overseas labor arrangements as 'normal, mutually beneficial economic cooperation.'

Response

Government of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea

Statement given

Contacted and responded — exact wording not on record.

What happened next (0)

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