Xinjiang cotton is something popular and a highly demanded commodity in today’s world.
Xinjiang, the northwestern region of China, plays a significant role in the global cotton trade.
Home to many ethnic minority groups like the Turkic Uyghur people produces a fifth of all the cotton produced in the world.
It is China’s top cotton producer.
Xinjiang Cotton is popular around the world.
Controversy
The United Nations and the human rights groups have alleged that over one million Turkic-speaking Muslim Uyghur people have been forced to live in re-education camps.
Top media companies like the BBC have released videos as proof of this allegation.
Responding to this, BCI (Better Cotton Initiative), a European non-profit, published on their website that they are ceasing all the operations in Xinjiang amid the reports of widespread forced labor.
Consequences
Major companies like Adidas, Nike, H&M, and Zara also released statements that they are banning the cotton from the Xinjiang region to manufacture their products.
(Nike statement on their website, which was removed later)
(H&M group statement on the Xinjiang cotton practices)
But all the companies removed the post from their websites as it turned out, there was a major backlash from the Chinese consumers on Chinese social platforms like Weibo.
The brands were removed from the online shopping portals and were boycotted as a response.
European Union, the US, and Canada have also ordered sanctions on Chinese individuals regarding this matter, banning entry to these countries and even freezing bank accounts.
Chinese Response
China has called a boycott on all the brands who released a statement against the Xinjiang cotton growing practices.
This has put a lot of pressure on brands as china is their top market, with Zara having more than 140+ stores in China. This is more than they have in the US.
There is a lot of tension going on in the cotton world. Apart from the pandemic hitting the world, there are many other issues like this, which are impacting millions of lives around the world.
Now that companies and brands have removed or withdrawn their statements, they are urging the Chinese government to let officials inside the camps see the reality of the people. Talks are in process.
What is Dinesh Exports’ take on the matter?
Dinesh Exports is a woven fabrics manufacturer with international sustainability certification like the BCI Cotton, GOTS, OCS, GRS and the OEKO Tex since 1994. Xinjian cotton controversy is a global issue now and the reports are only coming to light. Until credible reports are not being made public, we cannot comment on this matter.
