China bans media coverage of Disney's 'Mulan' in attempt to hide Xinjiang mass abuse

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Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2020/09/10/china-bans-media-coverage-of-d.html

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Partly shot in Xinjiang, Mulan’s credits included thanks to the authorities there, which prompted calls overseas for a boycott of the movie. China’s clampdown on ethnic Uighurs and other Muslims in Xinjiang has been criticised by some governments, including the United States, and human rights groups.

That seems odd.

A film studio that makes the questionable decision to film in an area where China is committing atrocities, actually thanks the government there, gag, but then somehow sees the movie itself as dangerous. You’d think they’d offer it up as proof of corporate America’s support of the local authorities and China’s policies.

Repressing it in China isn’t going to stop the boycotts outside China. They wouldn’t allow a fuss inside China. How does a media blackout really do anything here at all against any perceived insult?

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They’re simply worried about any mention of the persecution of Uighurs making its way into more general local articles about the movie. When it comes to preventing domestic discussion of things that embarrass or worry them, the Chinese government favours the “blunt instrument” approach to censorship so that there’s no “fuss” to which they have to react.

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I saw something on the internet yesterday about an editing error including a shot of the Uighur camps in the distance in the finished film.
a moment’s thought made me reject the truth of it. there’s no way something like the little thumbnail pic on the tweet would go unnoticed in any film, let alone a wealthy studio picture.
it seems obvious that the tweet was created as pro Uighur, anti Chinese propaganda. but that’s good. the propaganda push China was expecting from Disney’s Mulan™ has been subverted completely by somebody with photoshop and a Twitter account.

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(This is a parody account that mocks Chinese officialese.)

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  1. China’s treatment of persecuted minorities is terrible and heart-breaking.
  2. I wonder if those advocating for boycotting Mulan advocate the same for every film thanking problematic and authoritarian district or nation states guilty of current human right abuses in the credits?

(Note: I think the comment link from the blog just refreshed the blog page.)

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