Major retailers must stop sourcing from China’s Xinjiang region due to the ‘grave risk of forced labour’, a coalition of civil society groups said on Thursday, amid mounting global pressure on Beijing over its treatment of the Uighur Muslim minority.
More than 180 organisations urged brands from Adidas to Amazon to end sourcing of cotton and clothing from the region and cut ties with any suppliers in China that benefit from the forced labour of the ethnic Uighurs and other Muslim groups.
United Nations experts estimate that at least a million Uighurs and other Muslims are held in detention centres in Xinjiang. China has denied mistreatment and said the camps offer vocational training and help to fight terrorism and extremism.
Many of fashion labels’ supply chains are likely to be tainted by cotton picked by Uighurs that is exported across China and used by other suppliers, rights groups have urged. The above file picture from July 2, 2011, shows a female worker works in a textile factory in Xinjiang province
More than 180 organisations urged brands from Adidas to Amazon to end sourcing of cotton and clothing from the region. The above picture from September 26, 2010, shows farmers pick cotton on a farm on the outskirts of Hami, Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region in China
The United States this month hit senior Chinese officials with sanctions over alleged rights abuses against the Uighurs, and Britain and France have recently condemned their treatment.
While most fashion brands do not source from factories in Xinjiang, many of their supply chains are likely to be tainted by cotton picked by Uighurs that is exported across China and used by other suppliers, the rights groups said in a letter.
More than 80 per cent of China’s cotton comes from north-western Xinjiang, which is home to about 11million Uighurs.
United Nations experts estimate that at least a million Uighurs and other Muslims are held in detention centres in Xinjiang. The above file photo shows detainee listening to ‘de-radicalisation’ talks in a so-called re-education camp located in Lop County in Xinjiang, China
China has been heavily criticised by other countries over its policy against Muslims The file picture taken on June 21 shows a group of Uighur women working at a garment factory in a resettlement area in Yecheng county of China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region
More than 80 per cent of China’s cotton comes from north-western Xinjiang, which is home to about 11million Uighurs. The above picture shows a roll of Xinjiang long-staple cotton
‘Brands and retailers recognise there is a massive problem in the region, and that their supply chains are exposed to a grave risk of forced labour,’ said Scott Nova, head of the U.S.-based Worker Rights Consortium (WRC), which signed the letter.
‘We are cautiously optimistic that there will be commitments (from brands to pull out of Xinjiang) in the future,’ he added.
The Chinese embassies in London and Washington did not respond to requests for comment about the campaigners’ letter.
A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in the United States earlier this month said the accusation of forced labour in Xinjiang was ‘both false and malicious’.
The Thomson Reuters Foundation sent emailed questions to more than 30 leading global retailers about their supply chains in China and the origins of the cotton they sourced.
Japanese retailer Muji (a shop in London pictured) said it used cotton from Xinjiang but that independent auditors had found ‘no evidence of accusations of forced labour … at their mills’
Almost all of the brands did not respond directly to the questions, but most said they had anti-forced labour policies and required their suppliers to comply with a code of conduct.
Only one retailer – U.S.-based Costco – declined to comment.
All the companies that responded – including Gap, Patagonia and Zara-owner Inditex – said they did not source from factories in Xinjiang, but the majority could not confirm that their supply chain was free of cotton picked from the region.
Japanese retailer Muji said it used cotton from Xinjiang but that independent auditors had found ‘no evidence of accusations of forced labour … at their mills’.
US-based PVH – owner of brands from Calvin Klein to Tommy Hilfiger – said it would cut ties with any factories or mills that produce fabric or use cotton from Xinjiang within a year.
China is forcing Uighur workers to mass produce face masks as part of the country’s Muslim ‘re-education’ programme during the coronavirus pandemic, report says. The file picture taken on June 18 shows workers at a garment factory in Aketao county of the Uighur region Xinjiang
A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in the United States earlier this month said the accusation of forced labour in Xinjiang, situated in west China, was ‘both false and malicious’
‘The only way brands can ensure they are not profiting from exploitation is by exiting the region and ending relationships with suppliers propping up this Chinese government system,’ said Jasmine O’Connor, chief executive of Anti-Slavery International.
Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), a global non-profit aiming to improve conditions in the garment sector, said in March it would no longer license so-called Better Cotton from Xinjiang.
Companies such as IKEA and H&M, who use BCI to source cotton, have previously said they backed the decision to suspend licensing in the region and would no longer source from there.
Amid the growing international pressure on China, the U.S. government this month in a rare move said it blocked an $800,000 (£630,000) shipment of hair extensions from a Xinjiang-based business on suspicions that the goods were made with forced labour.
A New York Times investigation last week found some Chinese companies making face masks to protect against the coronavirus for both domestic and export markets had used Uighur labour.