China net users call for H&M boycott after ban of Xinjiang cotton

Citing human rights concerns, the world’s second-largest clothing retailer said it would not use cotton from Xinjiang.

Chinese net users have called for a boycott of Hennes & Mauritz AB because it won’t use cotton from Xinjiang, thrusting the world’s second-largest clothing retailer into the Asian nation’s human rights controversy. Users of China’s Twitter-like Weibo platform singled out the Swedish multinational after finding a statement on its website saying it has stopped sourcing cotton from the far western region. In the undated statement, H&M said it’s “deeply concerned by reports from civil society organizations and media that include accusations of forced labor and discrimination of ethnoreligious minorities.” H&M China said on Wednesday that its global supply chain is managed to comply with sustainability commitments, not to reflect any political position. The company also said it doesn’t purchase cotton directly from suppliers, but uses third parties.