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June 2006
Over two hundred million migrants work illegally in China. They power China's economic growth but are condemned to a life in the shadows.

On the outskirts of the new Shanghai live those who build it. "My life here consists only of work. I do nothing else", states Kejun. He comes from one of the poorest Chinese provinces but was forced to move to the city to find a job. Now, he works 7 days a week and sees his wife and child for only one day a year. "It's unbearable to leave our children behind." It's illegal for the rural population to move to the cities but the economy is so dependent on cheap labour that this rule is often ignored. Vulnerable and under constant threat of exposure, migrant workers are easily exploited. "Their lives are very tough", states NGO worker May Wong. "They are always discriminated against."