Major global fashion brands are facing a PR war as they're drawn into a deepening row between China and the West over alleged human rights abuses in the region of Xinjiang.
Burberry, Nike, Adidas and H&M are among brands facing a patriotic backlash in China for comments about their sourcing of cotton in Xinjiang, amid allegations of forced labour.
Chinese celebrities have in recent days terminated endorsement contracts with foreign brands while ride-sharing, shopping and map apps have removed H&M from their listings, in a pile-on aided by outrage on China’s tightly-controlled social media.
It all comes amid rising tensions, as Western governments and rights groups accuse authorities in Xinjiang of detaining and torturing Uighurs in camps. China flatly denies the allegations and describes the camps as vocational training centres which help combat religious extremism.
How did fashion brands get caught up in the diplomatic row?
Xinjiang is one of the world’s top cotton-producing areas, feeding many Western garment brands with textiles.
But several fashion firms have sought to distance themselves from the region’s cotton producers since allegations of human rights abuses emerged.
At least one million Uighurs and people from other mostly-Muslim groups have been held in camps in the region, according to right groups, where authorities are accused of forcibly sterilising women and imposing forced labour.
A Center for Global Policy report last year said hundreds of thousands of them were being forced to pick cotton.
In response to allegations, companies including Nike and Swedish retailer H&M last year made statements saying they did not use cotton from the region.
The online outcry against the brands only spiked last week after Western countries joined forces to sanction several key officials from Xinjiang.
"Chinese people will not allow some foreigners to eat China's rice while smashing its bowls," foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters at a regular briefing in Beijing.
"The Chinese market is here... we open our hearts to welcome foreign companies... But we oppose malicious attacks on China based on rumours and lies, and harm to China's interests."
The United States suggested the timely reappearance of old statements by fashion brands on the Chinese-owned social network Weibo was a calculated move by Beijing.
What has been the fallout?
Companies have been subject to a concerted boycott by Chinese consumers, while celebrities and tech firms have swiftly ended their brand partnerships.
More than 27 Chinese movie stars and singers have declared in the past two days that they would stop cooperating with foreign fashion labels.
German fashion house Hugo Boss was one of the latest brands caught up in the controversy on Saturday, with at least three celebrities dropping the label.
One of them was actor-singer Li Yifeng, who said in a statement through his agent on Weibo that he would only cooperate with brands that specifically support and procure cotton from Xinjiang.
Actor Li Yifeng attends Hugo Boss event in Shanghai in October 2019. Source: Visual China Group via Getty Images
Chinese TV stars Wang Yibo and Tan Songyun said they would end promotional partnerships with Nike, while Hong Kong pop singer Eason Chan said on Weibo that he would stop cooperating with Adidas and was "firmly against all actions that tarnish China".
Meanwhile, H&M was removed from the listings of China’s top ride-hailing app, the maps app for search engine Baidu Inc, e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and shopping app Meituan.
Gaming giant Tencent has also pulled a new project linked with luxury brand Burberry.
Singer Eason Chan attends an Adidas event in June 2018. Source: Getty Images
‘This is a moral test’
The World Uyghur Congress (WUC), which represents exiled ethnic Uighurs, said on Friday that some companies were starting to “cave in” to China by removing their forced labour policies from their websites.
Both The WUC and the Coalition to End Forced Labour said the world’s apparel brands were facing “a moral test”.
The coalition said corporations would have to choose between appeasing the Chinese government in an attempt to hold onto market access, or maintaining a Western customer base which is increasingly critical of China’s treatment of Uighur people.
“Millions of consumers worldwide who do not want to be made complicit in Uighur forced labour are going to be watching to see how companies react to this bullying,” the coalition said in a statement on Friday.
“Will they reaffirm their opposition to forced labour and crimes against humanity or will they cave to pressure?”
With reporting by Reuters and AFP.
