North Korea forced labor system widespread, U.N. report says

SEOUL -- North Korea conscripts much of its citizenry into a system of forced labor in which they endure harsh, dangerous conditions and are vulnerable to various forms of abuse, according to a United Nations report.

The U.N. Human Rights Office in Seoul has identified several forms of forced labor that North Koreans perform, including work carried out while in detention, work performed as part of the system of compulsory state-allocated employment and workers who are sent overseas to earn foreign currency, it said in the report, released on Tuesday.