“The H&M Group is deeply concerned about the reports from civil society organizations and the media regarding allegations of forced labor and discrimination against minorities in Xinjiang. This means that the cotton for our production will no longer be purchased from this area ”.
After the Western sanctions against China over the human rights issue in Xinjiang and the consequent response from Beijing, a statement from last year by the Swedish clothing giant was enough – now reposted on Weibo, the Chinese Twitter, by a user – to rekindle tensions over the autonomous region of the north-west of the country and to start the boycott against the clothing company.
The official H&M store on Alibaba’s Tmall e-commerce platform was no longer accessible today. And even on online stores such as Jd.com and Pinduoduo, H&M products were nowhere to be found. The Chinese branch of H&M specified that the group “has constantly supported the principles of openness and transparency in the management of global supply chains, ensuring compliance with the commitment to sustainable development outlined by the OECD Guidelines for responsible business conduct. , without wanting to represent any political position “.
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But it was not enough to calm the controversy. “Defame and boycott Xinjiang cotton while hoping to make money with China? An illusion!” The Communist Youth League wrote in a Weibo post. During the day, the well-known actor Huang Xuan’s contract with the Swedish company to oppose the “slander” against his country also came to an end. Result? End of the collaboration as a “brand ambassador” in China for the brand.
From various international investigations, Beijing is accused of arbitrary detention of at least one million people in “re-education camps”, mass surveillance and forced sterilization of the Muslim Uighur minority, one of the 56 ethnic groups recognized by the Chinese Communist Party.
China, which is H & M’s fourth largest reference market with 520 stores, second in number only to the US’s 593, produces 22% of the world‘s cotton, of which 84% is concentrated in Xinjiang, according to research. of the American think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies.
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