WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States says North Korea is acknowledging it runs prison labor camps but there’s no sign it’s going to shut them down.
A North Korean official said publicly Tuesday the authoritarian nation has “reform through labor” camps, a mention that appeared to come in response to a critical U.N. human rights report in February.
State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki (SAH’-kee) said Wednesday despite that apparent acknowledgment, the U.S. has not seen action by North Korea, which continues to deny the existence of its notorious political prison camps.
She said the U.S. is urging North Korea to close all the camps.
Last month, Secretary of State John Kerry dubbed the camps an “evil system.” The U.N. report estimated four political camps hold a total of between 80,000 and 120,000 prisoners.
