Editor's note: The following article is from the Chinese-language "Commentaries on International Affairs." The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

An article recently published by the independent news website The Greyzone has revealed how highly speculative studies have been used by anti-China figures in the West to claim that millions of Uygurs have been detained. 

The article provides more evidence that some Western governments and voices in mainstream media are keen to capitalize on whatever information they can grab hold of that helps them to demonize China.

In the article, "China detaining millions of Uygurs? Serious problems with claims by U.S.-backed NGO and far-right researcher 'led by God' against Beijing," the writer and lawyer Ajit Singh, who is based in Canada, and award-winning American journalist Max Blumenthal, note that although the claim that millions of Uygurs have been detained in Xinjiang has been repeated with increasing frequency and treated as unassailable in the West, it is, in fact, based on two dubious studies.

One study, according to the article, was produced by the Network of Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD), which is backed by the U.S. government. It formed its estimate of the number of detainees by interviewing a total of eight people. CHRD receives significant financial support from Washington's National Endowment for Democracy, which is an offshoot of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Another study, which relied on flimsy reports and speculation, was authored by Adrian Zenz, a senior fellow in China studies at the far-right Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation. The foundation was established by the American government in 1983 and also has close ties to the CIA. The Greyzone authors note that as Washington has ratcheted up pressure on China, Zenz has been lifted out of obscurity and transformed almost overnight into a go-to pundit on Xinjiang.

In September 2018, Zenz wrote an article published in the Central Asian Survey journal, which concluded that "Xinjiang's total re-education internment figure may be estimated at just over one million." He admitted that "there is no certainty" to his estimate. But he concluded it is "reasonable to speculate."

As time goes on, Zenz has inflated his speculative estimate of the number of detainees. Speaking at an event organized by the American government mission in Geneva in March, Zenz said, "Although it is speculative, it seems appropriate to estimate that up to 1.5 million ethnic minorities [have been detained by China in Xinjiang]." Zenz bumped up his estimate again during an interview in November when he claimed that China was detaining 1.8 million people.

The Greyzone article concludes that, given Zenz's habit of speculation and the questionable reliability of the lone Istiqlal TV media report he relies on for his estimates, it is troubling that Western governments and media have accepted and promoted his claims without a trace of skepticism.

Indeed, reports based on speculation and rumor will eventually be busted.

Another claim, made by participants in the #Stillnoinfo campaign launched on Twitter and Facebook, alleges that more than 100 Uygurs are still missing after their graduation from the vocational education and training centers. 

But reporters from CGTN found that among the over 100 supposedly missing persons, half of the names cannot be verified because of incomplete information, for example, their names are misspelled, and one-third are under criminal investigation or are convicted criminals. The rest are living normal lives, and many of them have never been to a vocational education center.

As more and more people come out to confront the unverified claims, the truth will ultimately prevail over the forces with ulterior motives. 

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