It’s been 2 weeks since our ‘Racism for Sale’ investigation dropped and I thought it might be worth sharing some of the fallout. ICYMI the basic story & links to the film are here…
First, a *lot* of ppl watched this film: > 2m on FB, >1.6m on Insta, >1m on YouTube in English & Chinese. Another 750k in Brazil.
This is a story about racist exploitation of kids, and it clearly resonated all over the world. @Lupita_Nyongo shared it too, which never hurts…
People in #Malawi were legitimately outraged...
…so outraged that the Malawian authorities had to respond. The police launched an investigation. So did the government.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs @nancygtembo made a statement to the press: “We are disgusted, disrespected, and deeply pained”
The Chinese embassy in Malawi put out a response…
That didn’t put out the fire. So China's Min of Foreign Affairs (which rarely responds to media stories) used its top Africa diplomat @WuPeng_MFAChina to try and calm things. He put out a statement saying China would “crack down on such racial discrimination videos in the future”
Side note: unfortunately for him, he was scheduled to meet Malawi’s Foreign Minister (the one who was “disgusted, disrespected, and deeply pained”) the next day...
Malawians were still demanding accountability. Days later, the story is still all over the front pages. People are planning a protest march to the Chinese embassy.
.@TheEconomist's chief Africa correspondent @johnpmcdermott nailed the key reason why China’s top Africa diplomat got dragged into this...
On June 20 the police in Zambia say they’ve arrested Lu Ke, the guy who was exploiting these kids. Apparently he tried to flee Malawi across an unofficial border crossing and is now being returned to Malawi to face charges.
bbc.com/news/world-afr…
The demos in Lilongwe went ahead anyway. Protesters held signs reading "Child rights are non negotiable"
I heard (though I don’t have this confirmed) that a 6-year-old kid called Bright and his mum, who were exploited by Lu Ke and who featured in our film, were among the people who marched to protest the abuse of Malawian children. This is Bright’s story (from the film)…
In China, despite censorship, the story went around WeChat. Most of the responses we’ve seen deplore the racism shown in the film, call for accountability, & concur that anti-black racism is a problem China has to address. This headline says “Stop Exploiting African Kids”
This investigation wasn't just about one guy. It raised awareness about this industry across the continent, put police & child-protection services on alert in multiple countries, and started a serious conversation about the asymmetries of Chinas engagement with Africa
When we commission and produce these films, we’re always looking for more than just “allegations.” We need to put together evidence so damning it cannot be ignored. That’s what happened here. #BBCAfricaEye #BBCEye
.@RunakoCelina found this story, pitched it, led the investigation online and on the ground, and was instrumental in writing and producing the film. She was helped in Malawi by the great @henrymhango3 . @ChFrancavilla directed and produced the documentary...
.@BardeyGoddie was lead camera in Malawi. @Yaolri led the geolocation and OSINT work, backed by @edward_the6 @Ecostard did the motion GFX & @SVanhooymissen the editing. Massive thanks to our Chinese undercover colleagues who cannot be named #NothingStaysHiddenForever
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