Beginning in the 1990s, terrorism driven by religious extremism wrecked havoc across northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

On the premise of creating a caliphate, terrorists committed bombings, stabbings and incited mass riots that saw hundreds of police officers killed in the line of duty and countless civilian lives lost.

Last August, China released a white paper that laid out detailed strategy in combating terrorism. The paper focused on the importance of vocational education and training centers, which were set up to redirect people away from religious extremism and provide trainees with the professional skills necessary to make a decent living.

However, the centers have been the topic of controversy in largely sensationalized news reports by Western media. They have been described as "concentration camps" where Chinese ethnic minorities are "indoctrinated."

So, what is vocational education and training really about? Watch this documentary to find out.