"Forced labor" a lie by anti-China forces to stir up trouble in Xinjiang: white paper

Workers are busy working in a workshop of a garment company in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Aug. 26, 2021. (Xinhua/Ding Lei)

BEIJING, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- Various anti-China forces intend to stir up trouble in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region with the "forced labor" lie, a white paper said Sunday.

Through the lie, anti-China forces malign China's actions against terrorism and extremism, suppress the development of industries in Xinjiang such as cotton, tomatoes, and photovoltaic products, and undermine China's participation in global industrial chain cooperation, according to the white paper issued by the State Council Information Office.

Their acts effectively deprive the local people in Xinjiang of their rights to work and development and opportunities to move out of poverty and backwardness, with the intent of stirring up trouble in the region, said the white paper titled "Xinjiang Population Dynamics and Data."

Workers of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang, including graduates from the vocational education and training centers, always choose their jobs of their own volition, and there is no coercion of any kind, said the document.