Xinjiang residents rebuke slanderous "forced labor" claims

A worker works at a packaging material industrial park in Kashgar, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, on Nov. 8, 2021. (Xinhua/Hou Zhaokang)

URUMQI, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) -- Representatives from all walks of life in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region have lambasted slanderous claims of "forced labor" in the region that have been fabricated by Western anti-China forces.

At a press briefing held in the regional capital Urumqi on Thursday, Xinjiang residents shared their experiences on equal and voluntary employment, as well as the positive impact of government policies on their well-being.

"People in Xinjiang have the right to define our own well-being, rather than the Western anti-China forces who fabricate rumors about us," said Alman Mahmut, a cardiology expert at a Xinjiang hospital.

As a frontline medical professional working in treatment, scientific research and education, Alman Mahmut said people in Xinjiang have enjoyed the tangible benefits of policies on education.

Yasin Muhammad, an official from Yutian County of Xinjiang's Hotan Prefecture, said at the press conference that residents of all ethnic groups in the region have the right to choose their own careers, and their rights are protected by law.

Ablikim Dawut said his training at a local vocational education and training center has secured him a job at an electric company with a monthly income of over 5,000 yuan (787.4 U.S. dollars). The claims of "forced labor" at the center are pure slander, he said.

The forced-labor slur fabricated by anti-China forces is a downright lie, which aims to disrupt the stability and prosperity of Xinjiang and destroy the people's right to subsistence, employment and development, said Hellat, who hosted the press briefing.