Apple, Sony, Samsung, Adidas, Lacoste, Gap, Nike, Puma, Uniqlo, H & M, the list of brands that use Uyghurs, subjected to forced labor, is long… China has transferred tens of thousands of members from the Muslim minority, held in internment camps, to factories supplying at least 80 of the world's biggest brands, an Australian think tank said in a detailed report on Monday.
80,000 Uighurs detained
Between 2017 and 2019, more than 80,000 Uighurs, detained in the Xinjiang region (northwest), were transferred to factories "belonging to the supply chains of 83 brands known worldwide in technology, textiles and automotive "Says the Australian Institute for Political Strategy (ASPI). "Factories use forced Uyghur labor as part of a (Chinese) state-sponsored transfer mechanism, which taints production chains worldwide," he insists in a large report. 56 pages.
Among the brands pinned are big names in electronics (Apple, Sony, Samsung, Microsoft, Nokia, etc.), textiles (Adidas, Lacoste, Gap, Nike, Puma, Uniqlo, H & M, etc.) and automotive (BMW, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, Land Rover, Jaguar…).
"Re-education camps"
Large Chinese groups are also listed, including car manufacturers, but also technological flagships like Haier (household appliances), Huawei or Oppo (smartphones). The Chinese authorities have initiated a policy of maximum security in Xinjiang in response to the inter-ethnic violence that has bloodied the vast region in recent years, often attributed by the authorities to Uighur separatists.
Several human rights organizations accuse China of interning at least one million Muslims in Xinjiang in "re-education camps". Beijing denies this figure and speaks of "vocational training centers" intended to support employment and combat religious extremism. However, according to the report of the Australian think-tank, Uyghur workers transferred to factories in the rest of China remain deprived of their liberty and forced to work under close surveillance.
"Companies benefiting from Uighur forced labor in their production chain are breaking laws that prohibit the importation of goods produced using forced labor," he notes.
Report calls on brands to investigate
The report calls on the groups concerned to "conduct immediate and in-depth investigations into the respect of human rights in the factories supplying them in China, including with independent and rigorous inspections and audits." AFP contacted some of the companies concerned by this accusation. Xinjiang authorities and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were not immediately available to respond.
Officially, the government admits to transferring "surplus labor forces" from Xinjiang to other regions in the name of the fight against poverty.
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