Summary: “Temu: always cheaper… but at what price?”, “Courchevel, its merciless world”, “Burma: youth in resistance”, “Haiti: a country in the hands of gangs”.
With 900 million users worldwide, Temu, the new Chinese e-commerce platform, is one of the most spectacular commercial successes of the last twenty years. In just a few months, it has become the most downloaded shopping application in the United States but also in France, where 13 million consumers have already been won over.
The site offers 80,000 items at unbeatable prices, the majority of which are less than 2 euros. How is it possible to display such low prices? What pressure is applied to suppliers? And what are these products sold on Temu worth? Would they be dangerous, or even illegal for some in Europe? Under what conditions are these products manufactured? How do these manufacturers get inspiration to release several thousand new products for sale every month?
Behind this new platform which claims to be the rival of the American Amazon is Colin Huang, the second largest Chinese fortune. The journalists from “Special Envoy” investigated the underside of this application which is driving the world of commerce crazy, at the heart of “made in China” in the industrial areas of Jinhua and Canton.
A report by Marion Cieutat, Justine Jankowski, Jié Xiong, Julien Mercier, Marine Zambrano, Raphaël Mencuccini, Evan Caron for STP productions.
It was a dream of the post-war years. In 1946, the Savoie department decided to build a resort from scratch, intended to become a ski destination for everyone. Nearly eighty years later, what remains of Courchevel’s popular vocation? With its five palaces, its twenty-five 5-star hotels and its four Michelin-starred restaurants, it has become one of the most expensive resorts in the world. Restaurateurs, hoteliers, all have chosen to seduce their wealthy clients from Brazil, the Emirates and the United States.
In Courchevel, it’s madness of grandeur. The chalets are getting bigger and bigger, the mountain is being dug deeper and deeper to gain square meters and install swimming pools, spas, private cinema rooms. Accommodations that rent for up to 200,000 euros per week with Rolls Royce and driver available. The owners of these luxury chalets and hotels include big French bosses like Denis Dumont, founder of the Grand Frais supermarkets, Bernard Arnault, Xavier Niel and Stéphane Courbit. A real estate frenzy and concrete development against which some residents are now speaking out. Portrait of a world-renowned resort, which has not finished with the white gold business.
A report by Laura Orosemane, Brice Gouronnec, Benjamine Jeunehomme, Emilie Janin.
It is a country in civil war, one of the most closed in the world. The “Special Envoy” team was able to film the battles between the Burmese rebels and the regular army, and followed Commander Maui, one of the leaders of this resistance, who inflicted heavy defeats on the troops of the junta in power.
Filmed on the front line, 200 kilometers from the Burmese capital, this report recounts the lives of women and men in their twenties, shadow soldiers or nurses, who fight to restore democracy in Burma.
A report by Constantin Simon, Aruna Popuri and Philip Bahardu / Zebra Prod.
Guest : Loïc de La Mornais is located in Thailand, in Mae Sot, a border town with Burma and “rear base of the Burmese rebels”.
Jimmy Chérizier, aka “Barbecue”, is the face of recent power grabs in Haiti. Legend has it that he burned his enemies alive. The “Special Envoy” team met him in his stronghold three weeks before he set out to attack the government. This former police officer who became one of the most powerful gang leaders in Haiti then intended to bring together all the criminal groups to overthrow “corrupt politicians and oligarchs” from the country. He kept his word: on March 5, 2024, at the head of an alliance between the different gangs, he demanded the departure of the Prime Minister, Ariel Henry, who resigned on March 11, while the capital Port-au-Prince was on fire and blood.
For three years and the assassination of former President Jovenel Moïse, Haiti has been sinking into endless chaos. Now, 80% of the capital is controlled by criminal groups, such as 103 Zonbi, an ally of “Barbecue”. They thus secure income through various types of racketeering, primarily kidnapping. Violence is daily, particularly targeting women, institutions are overwhelmed and more than 360,000 terrified people have already had to flee their homes.
A report by Marc de Chalvron, Florian Le Moal, Juliette Cohen Olivieri, Yvon Vilius.
The editorial staff of “Envoyé Spécial” invites you to comment on the program on its Facebook page or on X with the hashtag #Correspondent.
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