North Korea continues to rank as one of the world’s most repressive countries due to its reliance on strict surveillance, prison camps and other instruments of social control, according to a new report.

The nonprofit organization Freedom House has awarded North Korea zero points for political rights and three points for civil liberties in its new “Freedom in the World 2024” report, making the DPRK one of the lowest-ranked countries. 

Only Syria, South Sudan and Turkmenistan scored lower, while Eritrea also received just three points.

In explaining the score, Freedom House detailedNorth Korea’s extensive social controls, including widespread