The Hidden Hands Behind Cheap Chinese Goods

The Hidden Hands Behind Cheap Chinese Goods
Sun Yi holding the SOS letter he wrote, which made its way around the world and back to him. Courtesy Flying Cloud Productions
​Leon Lee
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Commentary

In 2012, a woman in Oregon opened a box of Halloween decorations she purchased at Kmart. Tucked inside was a scrap of paper, bearing a desperate plea scrawled in broken English: “If you occasionally buy this product, please kindly resend this letter to the World Human Rights Organization.” It went on to describe long hours, beatings, and a brutal Chinese labor camp. The writer, Sun Yi, an engineer and husband, had been jailed for practicing Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline outlawed by the Chinese Communist Party.

​Leon Lee
​Leon Lee
Author
​Leon Lee is a Peabody Award-winning Canadian filmmaker renowned for his compelling documentaries that illuminate human rights issues in China. His acclaimed film Letter from Masanjia tells the harrowing story of Sun Yi, a political prisoner whose hidden SOS letter exposed the brutal realities of China's labor camps and contributed to their eventual closure.