Synopsis

The city of Shenzhen, close to Hong Kong, was designated a Special Economic Zone in the 1980s, a measure aimed at stimulating the local economy through reduced labour costs. This growth is taking its toll, however: every year, ten thousand migrant workers are injured performing their factory work. Three labourers tell their stories: their hope of a prosperous future was smashed by disappointment on the shop floor; many fully educated people ended up at a conveyor belt in a toy factory, where they have to assemble Santa Clauses. All three of them have lost a limb while being forced to work under dreadful conditions, fourteen hours a day, seven days a week, often without a lunch break. The lawyer Zhou Litai took pity on them, offering them legal support, but also food and shelter. In a sober but effective way, the downside of Western demand for cheap products is starkly revealed.