NATIONALISM AS A MECHANISM: ANALYSIS OF XINJIANG COTTON BAN INCIDENT

Öz

On March 22, 2021 the US, UK, Canada and the European Union imposed a coordinated series of sanctions on current and former Chinese officials, increasing pressure on China for alleged abuses in Xinjiang. China replied with its own sanctions on European officials. Indeed, very recently after this event, on June 10, 2021, China passed a new law to ‘‘counter foreign actions’’. It has rejected the allegations of abuse, stating that the camps are ‘‘re-education’’ facilities utilised to combat terrorism. According to Xinhua Net netizens expressed support for local brands after H&M and Nike came under fire in China for refusing to use Xinjiang cotton. In addition to this, 11 topics connected to Xinjiang cotton were on the trending list in China’s Twitter-like social media platform Sina Weibo, each issue attracting tens of millions of views and discussions. The study tried to relate this phenomenon to the concept of nationalism by taking literature from nationalism and media/media censorship theories, which mainly serve as a source of legitimacy and instrumental strategy for the state. The study aims to analyse the highest government’s management of nationalism and public opinion, during the time it faces international pressure.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Xinjiang cotton ban
• nationalism
• nationalistic sentiment
• anti-foreign protests
• media censorship
• boycotts
• the Chinese government

BİR MEKANİZMA OLARAK MİLLİYETÇİLİK: SİNCAN PAMUK YASAĞI OLAYININ ANALİZİ

Öz

22 Mart 2021 tarihinde Çin üzerindeki baskı; ABD, İngiltere, Kanada ve Avrupa Birliği tarafından, Sincan Uygur Özerk Bölgesi’ndeki iddia edilen suistimaller nedeniyle, mevcut ve eski Çinli yetkililere koordineli bir dizi yaptırım uygulanarak artırıldı. Çin, Avrupalı yetkililere kendi yaptırımlarıyla yanıt verdi. Nitekim bu olaydan çok kısa bir süre sonra, 10 Haziran 2021’de Çin, “yabancı eylemlere karşı” yeni bir yasa çıkardı. Kampların terörle mücadele için kullanılan “yeniden eğitim” tesisleri olduğunu belirterek taciz iddialarını reddetti. Xinhua Net’e göre, internet kullanıcıları H&M ve Nike’ın Sincan pamuğu kullanmayı reddetmesinin ardından yerel markalara desteklerini dile getirdiler. Bunun yanı sıra, Sincan pamuğuyla bağlantılı 11 konu, Çin’in Twitter benzeri sosyal medya platformu Sina Weibo’da trendler listesinde yer aldı ve her konu on milyonlarca görüş ve tartışmayı çekti. Bu çalışma, devlet için bir meşruiyet kaynağı ve araçsal strateji işlevi gören milliyetçilik ve medya/medya sansür teorilerini baz alarak bu olayı milliyetçilik kavramıyla ilişkilendirmeye çalışmış, en yüksek hükümetin uluslararası baskıyla karşı karşıya kaldığı süreçteki milliyetçilik yaklaşımını ve kamuoyu yönetimini analiz etmeyi amaçlamıştır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Sincan pamuk yasağı
• milliyetçilik
• milliyetçi duyarlılık
• yabancı karşıtı protestolar
• medya sansürü
• boykotlar
• Çin hükümeti

Kaynakça

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