Mulan: Why are some people unhappy with the new Disney film?
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Mulan was supposed to be out in cinemas earlier this year but is now available to stream on Disney+ instead
Disney's new live-action film, Mulan, is out on Disney+ but some people are unhappy about the movie and don't want others to watch it.
That's because of the way Muslim Uighurs are treated in the area of Xinjiang, China, where parts of the movie were filmed, and because of comments Liu Yifei - who plays Mulan - made on social media about police in Hong Kong.
The film's release has raised a lot of argument about China, politics and human rights - here's why.
Mulan is a remake of the 1998 animated film in which a young Chinese girl disguises herself as male and joins the army in place of her father.
What's happening in Xinjiang, China?
Some people who've watched the film noticed that Disney thanked government groups in the area of Xinjiang in the end credits.
Xinjiang is a province in north-west China and 11 million Uighurs live there.
But the Chinese government is accused of holding one million of these people without trial in prison camps there, as well as preventing the women from having more children.
The Uighurs are a mostly Muslim Turkic ethnicity who regard themselves as culturally and ethnically close to Central Asian nations.
The majority live in China's Xinjiang province, where they number about 11 million people. They are one of China's 55 officially recognized ethnic minorities.
The release of Mulan was delayed from March because of the coronavirus pandemic
In the camps, it is claimed that Uighur Muslims are made to speak a different language (Mandarin Chinese), swear loyalty to the Chinese President, Xi Jinping, and say they will turn away from their faith.
Last year Arsenal player Mesut Ozil also spoke out about China and its treatment of Uighurs and in July, the UK's Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab accused China of serious human rights abuses against the Uighurs.
China has repeatedly denied mistreating Uighur Muslims in the country though. It says they are being educated in "vocational training centres" to combat violent religious extremism.
But former prisoners have told the 大象传媒 of horrible experiences they allegedly suffered in these centres.
Liu Yifei plays the lead character Mulan in the film
What did Liu Yifei do?
Lui Yifei plays the lead character in the film.
She angered people last year with comments she made on social media supporting police in the area of Hong Kong in China.
The police there were accused of violence towards people protesting against new rules the Chinese government wanted to bring in, which they said would restrict their freedoms.
That was last year, but things are still tense in Hong Kong.
Disney has not yet commented on the row over the locations and the credits.
- Published12 August 2020
- Published4 September 2020
