Nike and H&M are facing a backlash from Chinese state media and e-commerce platforms over historic statements of concern about forced labor in Xinjiang. The backlash comes days after a round of sanctions stoked tensions between Beijing and Western governments.
Over the past year, a number of Western companies have publicly announced they will examine their global supply chains to ensure they are free from Xinjiang cotton products after allegations of forced labor involving the region’s Muslim Uyghur people.
According to CNN, the attacks began when the ruling Communist Party’s Youth League on Wednesday called attention on its social media account to an H&M statement last year that it would stop buying cotton from Xinjiang in China’s Northwest region. The Swedish retailer, in words also used by some other brands, said it was “deeply concerned” over reports of forced labor in the production of cotton in Xinjiang.
The comments sparked a flood of criticism directed at H&M from Chinese social media users and China’s Communist Party’s newspaper People’s Daily and State broadcaster CCTV also spoke out. Chinese e-commerce giants Alibaba and JD.com subsequently removed all H&M products for sale following the backlash.
The criticism soon spread to Nike as a statement issued nearly a year ago spread across social channels. Nike wrote in the statement,
“Nike does not source products from [Xinjiang], and we have confirmed with our contract suppliers that they are not using textiles or spun yarn from the region.”
Soon after the Nike statement appeared on Weibo. Chinese singer and actor Wang Yibo said that he had cut ties with Nike and “firmly opposes any remarks and actions that smear China.”
Nike has not commented on the developments.
