Dictatorships throughout history have relied on fear and control to maintain power. The world has resoundingly condemned the atrocities of the Nazi concentration camps, the Soviet Gulag, and many other systems of repression around the globe, but has remained largely silent on one of the most extensive and repressive prison camp system in the world: the Chinese Laogai. Since the early 1950s, China has used the Laogai to crush dissent and root out potential sources of opposition, whether political, economic, or religious in nature, while simultaneously exploiting prisoners as a source of free labor.
Under Mao’s rule, prisoners were used to complete massive infrastructure projects such as roads and irrigation projects, in addition to taking advantage of their free labor in agricultural production and mining. In recent years, as the country has adopted a market economy, the Laogai has increasingly become a source of revenue for the government, and prisoners are forced to produce a wide range of goods, from tea to children’s toys to semiconductors.

Originally modeled on the Soviet Gulag, the Laogai of today is thriving, with millions of people suffering in more than one thousand camps. Although many of the Laogai's prisoners are incarcerated for ordinary crimes, there is little respect for due process, or the rule of law in general, within the Chinese criminal justice system, meaning conviction by a fair trial is, at worst, impossible, and at best, uncertain in China. Many find themselves in the Laogai for crimes that are political in nature, such as "subverting State power" or "revealing State secrets." The definitions of these crimes are so broad that the authorities can use them to justify arresting just about anyone for the most innocuous of activities, leading to a widespread chilling effect on all forms of expression.

Furthermore, the Laogai's role in economic production enables the Chinese government to profit from the imprisonment of its people, creating a perverse incentive to maintain high rates of incarceration. Since its inception in 1949, 40 to 50 million people are estimated to have been imprisoned in the Laogai, and untold numbers have perished under its brutality.

In 1994, in an effort to stem increasing international criticism of the Laogai, the Chinese government officially replaced the term Laogai with jianyu (prison). Despite this cosmetic change, the system remained unchanged, as the government itself explicitly stated in an article of the government-sanctioned Beijing Legal Daily that appeared on January 7, 1995: "Henceforth, the word 'Laogai' will no longer exist, but the function, character and tasks of our prison administration will remain unchanged."

Forced Labor

The Laogai is more than a place to detain and "reform" convicts and dissidents; it is inextricably linked to the Chinese economy. The Chinese government profits handsomely from the labor camp system by allowing goods made with forced labor to enter both domestic and international markets. The Laogai relies on prisoners to provide free labor in over 1,000 camps. Most Laogai camps operate a commercial enterprise, be it a factory, farm, workshop, or mine. Indeed, many camps have a number of Laogai enterprises producing a wide range of products. Prisons in China generally have two names: a commercial name used for trading and an official administrative name identifying the facility as a prison. Because prisoners are not paid for their work, these Laogai enterprises are able to reap huge profits. Due to intentional deception on the part of Laogai enterprises, lax international labeling requirements for manufactured goods, and the fact that many Laogai products are traded via middlemen, it is extremely difficult to trace the origins of Laogai products once they have entered the market. Consequently, enforcement of bilateral trade agreements, such as the 1992 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the U.S. and the PRC on prohibiting trade in prison labor products and a similar 1994 Statement of Cooperation (SOC), has proven difficult and ineffective. In addition, many foreign governments are more than willing to look the other way in order to preserve their trading relationship with China and its growing economy.  Our report on advertisement of Laogai products within the United States in the Dunn and Bradstreet product sourcing database is available in digital format for download, or by request.

For more information on the history and structure of the Laogai, see our Laogai Handbook.

What LRF Does

LRF serves as an information clearinghouse on all issues related to the Laogai. With our extensive network of supporters both within China and throughout the world, our mission is to lift the veil of secrecy that surrounds the Laogai.

• The Black Series: Stories of Survival in the Laogai
• The Laogai as a system of repression has a history of nearly 60 years. Unfortunately Laogai survivors are unable to publicly share their experiences in China for fear of retribution from the authorities. In an effort to preserve this history and to document the continuing human rights abuses occurring within the Laogai, LRF has created the Black Series, a series of memoirs by Laogai survivors. The Black Series describes life in the Laogai throughout the 60 year history of the PRC and is one of LRF's most important programs.
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• The Laogai Handbook
• LRF's biennial Laogai Handbook is the world's only independent and publicly available catalog of China's Laogai. The current edition, which incorporates information uncovered through September 2008, identifies 1,402 camps, including those that are currently in operation as well as many that have been dismantled, merged, or moved. Yet this number is only an estimate and most likely many more camps exist. The Chinese government considers national statistics about the Laogai to be State secrets—but the Laogai is a difficult secret to keep.  The Laogai Handbook is available in digital format for download, or by request, or our print version is available for purchase.

• Laogai System Research
  
• LRF initiatives research and report on many aspects of the Laogai system, including the research into the production systems and international supply chains of the Laogai.  The 2008 “Laogai Forced Labor Camps Listed in Dun & Bradstreet Databases” report details 314 entries for Laogai enterprises in the international business database Dun and Bradstreet.  LRF's latest report in this area, "Not for Sale: Advertising Forced Labor Products for Illegal Export" found that over 100 Laogai enterprises are advertising or are listed in English on the Internet, suggesting the intent to export Laogai products to international markets, including the U.S.  Fact sheets on the Laogai system are available for download.
  
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