Florence Widdicombe was only six years old when she went to a Tesco store to buy some Christmas cards for her classmates.
She picked out a box of kitten-themed cards and began sorting them out. When she opened the last card, she read something that shook her to the core.
A Strange Message
Florence was shocked to realize that someone had already used this card before. She was planning to write her own personal message, but another person had beaten her to it.
She opened the card and began reading. As she soon learned, the writing had nothing to do with Christmas.
Confused
Florence was too young to fully understand what she was reading and decided to show the message to her father.
The note horrified Ben Widdicombe, but he thought it was just a sick joke. He couldn't understand how this message ended up inside a box of Christmas cards in the first place.
In Desperate Need Of Help
Ben explained to his daughter that this note was written by someone who was in desperate need of help, which saddened the little girl.
Sadly, the author of this note was living on the other side of the world. So, what did the message say?
It Was Written By A Foreign Prisoner
"We are foreign prisoners in Shanghai Qingpu Prison China," the note read.
"Forced to work against our will. Please help us and notify the human rights organization. Use the link to contact Mr. Peter Humphrey." Whoever wrote this note was desperate, and this was their last hope. But, there was another urgent request, and Ben and his daughter were running out of time.
Searching For Peter Humphrey
The author of the note asked them to contact British journalist Peter Humphrey, who once stayed in the same prison. Ben immediately began looking for him.
"It hits home. There are injustices in the world, and there are people in difficult situations, and we know about that, and we read about that each and every day," he told BBC. Was he able to track down Peter Humphrey?
He Wasn't Surprised
Ben found Humphrey's LinkedIn profile and told him about the note his daughter had seen in her Christmas card.
This news didn't surprise Humphrey, and he even knew who might've written the note.
His Former Cellmate
The British journalist told BBC that he assumed the author of this note was his former cellmate with whom he shared a cell for two years between 2013 and 2015.
However, he refused to reveal the inmate's name as he feared for his safety. Would he be able to help him?
He Feared For His Safety
Humphrey was afraid his former cellmate would be punished if the authorities found out what he had done.
But how did Humphrey's cellmate manage to leave a note in a box of kitten-themed Christmas cards?
It Was Made In A Chinese Printing Factory
The card that Florence bought that day was made in China and was then distributed to several suppliers, including Tesco stores.
"We were shocked by these allegations and immediately halted production at the factory where these cards are produced and launched an investigation." A Tesco spokesperson told BBC.
Strange Situation
Tesco claimed that none of their suppliers have ever exploited forced labor, but clearly, something was happening behind closed doors.
The Chinese factory where the Christmas cards were made was checked a month prior and the authorities didn't find any signs of forced labor. So, how did this happen?
Life In Prison
The British journalist shared how living in a Chinese prison was like: "They sleep in very rusty iron bunk beds with a mattress which is no more than about 1cm thick underneath."
"In the winter, it's extremely cold, there's no heating in the building, and in the summer, it's extremely hot because there is no air conditioning." But Humphrey wasn't the only foreigner there.
More Than 250 Foreign Prisoners Are Kept There
According to the journalist, more than 250 foreign prisoners are kept in the Shanghai Qingpu Prison.
"I met so many people who I considered to be the victims of wrongful imprisonment or at least reckless sentencing for minor offenses," he told BBC.
Nothing Is Certain At The Moment
Humphrey isn't sure whether anything can be done to stop forced labor in the Shanghai Qingpu Prison, as it seems to be a requirement for all inmates nowadays.
However, China continues to deny any wrongdoing. So what does this incident mean for the future of the printing company?
China Continues To Deny Any Wrongdoing
Tesco is no longer in business with the Chinese factory over the alleged forced labor violation.
However, China's foreign ministry spokesperson, Gen Shuang, denies claims that inmates were being used as forced labor at the prison.