NK Econ Watch on Camp 15

For several weeks, we’ve read reports that North Korea had razed Camp 15 to “prove” to foreign visitors that survivors’  accounts of the camp were false. Curtis has since examined imagery from October 20th, and declared himself “unsure of the recent status of the camp.”

Clearly, reports that said no trace of the camp still existed were incorrect. That story never made sense to me, for two reasons. First, North Korea understands that the whole world is watching it on Google Earth. Razing the entire camp couldn’t convince us of anything except that a sham was underway. Subtler changes, including gutting and renovating existing structures, would be a more effective strategy if maskirovka were its intention.

Like a lot of reports about North Korea, this one remains a mystery for the time being, and the full truth may have to wait for a new government of North Korea to let it be told.