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North Korea at a Glance
Information provided by Liberty in North Korea (LiNK)
Oprah.com   |   May 18, 2010
Nearly 300,000 people have fled North Korea, one of the most isolated and dangerous countries in the world. Learn more about this country and its refugee crisis.
  • Official name: Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)
  • Capital: Pyongyang
  • Government: Centralized Communist state; one-man, one-party dictatorship of "Dear Leader" Kim Jong Il and the Korean Workers Party
  • Population: 22.7 million
  • More than 1 million North Koreans perished in a devastating famine in the mid-1990s.
  • 33 percent of the population is undernourished.
  • 37 percent of children are stunted, 23 percent are underweight and 7 percent are wasted away.
  • Up to 200,000 are unjustly imprisoned in Soviet style gulags
  • Prisoners in these camps experience extreme abuse, torture, rape, forced abortions and even executions
  • More than 400,000 have died in these political prison camps
  • Up to 300,000 refugees are hiding in China
  • Approximately 80 percent of North Korean refugees in China are women
  • Of these women, 70 to 90 percent end up sexually trafficked, sold repeatedly or forced into marriages.
  • These women can be bought for anywhere from a few hundred U.S, dollars up to $2,000.
Escaping North Korea is dangerous and life-threatening. Browse this photo gallery to learn more about the journey many refugees take.


Keep Reading
140 days in captivity—Laura Ling's survival story
Lisa Ling's personal connection to North Korea
North Korea's sobering humanitarian crisis
Printed from Oprah.com on Saturday, May 18, 2013
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