WASHINGTON – Several Chinese companies and major international brands that supply rejected the Trump administration’s decision to add 11 Chinese companies to a government blacklist for aiding human rights violations, saying they had found no evidence of forced labor or others. abuses in their supply chains. .
On Monday, the Trump administration added Chinese companies to the so-called entity list, preventing them from buying American technology and products without a special license. Nine companies were added to the list for their use of forced labor, while two others were included for genetic testing that was used to promote repression of Uighurs and other Muslim minorities in the Xinjiang region, the Commerce Department said.
The Chinese government has carried out a mass arrest campaign in Xinjiang, placing one million or more members of Muslims and other minority groups in large internment camps aimed at increasing their loyalty to the Communist Party. Some of these detainees are forced to work in factories in or near their camps.
The list of companies sanctioned on Monday included current and former suppliers to major international brands such as Apple, Ralph Lauren, Google, HP, Tommy Hilfiger, Hugo Boss and Muji, according to a report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, an established think tank. by the Australian government. The group cited the websites of the sanctioned Chinese companies, which cited their financial relationships with major American brands.
In a statement, Apple said it had immediately started a detailed investigation of Nanchang O-Film Tech, one of its suppliers that appeared on the list, when it learned of the allegations earlier this year. Apple sent independent investigators to O-Film’s facilities in March, and then conducted surprise audits in June and July, including verification of employee documentation and interviews with workers in local languages, he said.
“Apple is dedicated to ensuring that everyone in our supply chain is treated with dignity and respect,” Josh Rosenstock, an Apple spokesman, said in a statement. “We have found no evidence of forced labor on Apple’s production lines and we plan to continue monitoring.”
Another listed company, Changji Esquel Textile Company Ltd., appeared to have extensive connections with major international clothing brands, including Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger and Hugo Boss.
In a statement, Hugo Boss said he had “a close and lasting business relationship with the Esquel Group,” the parent company of Changji Esquel. Hugo Boss said he prohibited the use of forced labor in his supply chains and that he had raised the allegations with the Esquel Group. Esquel had assured him that all company requirements and standards had been met.
“At Hugo Boss we take these allegations very seriously and will continue to investigate the matter,” the company said.
In a statement Monday, Esquel denied the allegations, saying it did not and would never use forced labor, and that no one from the Commerce Department had spoken to the company to investigate the claims.
Another Chinese company, BGI Group, which had two listed subsidiaries to provide genetic technology for Uighur surveillance, said it was “baffled” by its inclusion.
The BGI Group said that a subsidiary, Xinjiang Silk Road BGI, was established in November 2016 and that so far it had not done any actual business. The other entity, Beijing Liuhe BGI, provides commercial genetic synthesis for scientists conducting basic research, and it is unclear “how its services or products could be used with respect to the allegations,” the company said.
“The BGI Group does not approve and would never be involved in any human rights abuse,” it said in a statement.
Sapna Maheshwari contributed reports.
