On the morning of May 11, 2021, a workshop themed “Real Images · Real Xinjiang” was held in Beijing by the China Forum under the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University and Beijign InHope Pictures Co., Ltd. The event brought together close to 30 participants from academia, the China Forum, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, media, and Tsinghua University.

The workshop featured the screening of two documentaries on Xinjiang by Professor LIU Xiangchen, a renowned filmmaker and anthropologis. Afterwards, participants engaged in a robust discussion on Xinjiang’s development, demographic transformation, and historical and cultural links with the Central Plains, as well as on the misunderstandings and slanders of Xinjiang by some foreign media.

Professor Liu introduced his long-term project of documenting the lives of Xinjiang’s ethnic minorities, who have experienced profound improvement in their lives over the past decade: living standards have improved significantly; the younger generation is receiving better education; and progress toward gender equality has accelerated. With real-life cases from his documentaries, Professor Liu refuted the smears of “forced labor” in Xinjiang.

LI Jianxin, Professor of Sociology at Peking University, refuted the “Xinjiang genocide” allegations with figures from the demographic development in the region. WU Xinhua, head of the Xinjiang Archaeological Team at the Archaeology Institute under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, explained the geostrategic and cultural significance of Xinjiang.

Mr. ZHANG Lirong, Secretary General of the China Forum, and Ms. XU Qiuli, Chief Producer of InHope Pictures, addressed the gathering, which was moderated by Ms. HAN Hua, Executive Committee Member of the China Forum.