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Comment by pjc50 | Hacker News Reader

> Various people have pointed out that they do not believe the forced labor stories, because over 70% of cotton in Xinjiang is picked by machines. Whether you believe this statistic is up to you — I'm simply saying that this statistic has been mentioned.

The point of forced labour in these situations is not the efficient picking of cotton but as a form of punishment.

> western narrative of forced labor cotton

Are we calling everything we disagree with a "narrative" now?

We don't have all the facts on Xinjiang because journalism is prevented there - which in and of itself should make us suspicious.

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> Are we calling everything we disagree with

My comment is not a statement on whether I agree or disagree.

"Narrative" is a neutral word. Something can be a narrative even if it's true and I agree with it.

> "Narrative" is a neutral word

Not necessarily: a representation of a particular situation or process in such a way as to reflect or conform to an overarching set of aims or values

Narratives can be correct or incorrect (and this one is mostly correct insofar as it makes specific claims about the treatment of Uyghurs in Xinjiang.) Calling a set of claims a narrative for the purpose of pointing out some people don’t agree doesn’t entail that those claims are wrong.

> The point of forced labour in these situations is not the efficient picking of cotton but as a form of punishment.

Punishment isn't the right word. The goal is to obliterate Uyghur village life and shift them to a legible lifestyle that is integrated into the Chinese mass market. Having them e.g. pick cotton, aside from being a convenient way to pay off well-connected supporters, makes the Uyghurs dependent on a regime-friendly company and also gives them more income to buy the same goods and consume the same media as the rest of China.

ETA: I'm confused as to whether this comment pissed off a bunch of wumao or pissed off a bunch of Americans who somehow managed to misread it as praising China. An explanation of a bad behavior isn't a justification for it, but something that can help provide insight into why it's happening and possible pressure points to stop it.

Forced labour situations do not usually result in increased income. Sometimes, not any income at all.

That's not this situation, though. The original report on coercion in the Xinjiang cotton industry doesn't even make the claim that they're enslaved, uncompensated, or forced, although after passing through a dozen media articles it's warped into that. Most people here are seemingly unaware that this is an entirely different set of allegations than the reeducation camps.

Implicit coercion has been used to shift Uyghur people into the market economy. The visible income of poor Uyghurs is in fact the metric that local officials are being evaluated on for performance.

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