[2]: 4 Encompassing approximately 11.9 km2 (4.61 mi2),[2]: 11 preliminary imagery analysis suggests a minimum of 1,500–2,500 are detained,[2]: 4 although the number is likely significantly higher with estimates projecting between 3,300[3] and 5,000 prisoners.
[1] Since 1999 the camp is used to detain female defectors,[4] which account for 50–60% of the prisoners, while others are incarcerated for theft, prostitution, unauthorized trade, etc.
[2]: 4 The camp is surrounded by fields, where the prisoners have to grow rice and corn[5] for delivery to the Ministry of Public Security.
Dead prisoners are buried in mass shallow graves on a nearby hill[4][6] referred to as “Flower Mountain,” (꽃동산) appropriately named because of its azaleas that bloom every spring.
[2]: 9 A satellite imagery analysis released by the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea in December 2020 reveals no major changes to the overall physical boundaries of the camp;[2]: 145 however, individual detainee divisions have undergone notable updates or expansion from 2002 to 2019.