Activists hold a demonstration against China's policies towards Uyghur Muslims in Jakarta, Indonesia on January 4, 2021.Siswono Toyudho/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images |
The research group that is run by the non-profit Campaign
for Accountability and is often critical of large tech companies said that
Amazon's supplier list includes firms accused of using Uyghur labourers,
reported Louise Matsakis, a tech investigator, writing in NBC News.
The Tech Transparency Project identified three Amazon
suppliers that have been linked to forced labour in China directly: Luxshare
Precision Industry, AcBel Polytech and Lens Technology.
According to its public supplier list, Amazon works with two
subsidiaries of Luxshare: Dongguan Luxshare Precision Industry and Shenzhen
Luxshare Electro-Acoustic Technology.
The suppliers help produce Amazon-branded devices and
products sold under house labels like AmazonBasics.
The report also warned that some of Amazon's third-party
sellers may be offering products made using labour from the western Chinese
region of Xinjiang, such as cotton imports that are already the subject of US
sanctions, said Matsakis.
"The findings raise questions about Amazon's exposure
to China's repression of minority Uyghurs in Xinjiang — and the extent to which
the e-commerce giant is adequately vetting its supplier relationships,"
researchers from the Tech Transparency Project wrote in the report.
Amazon declined to comment on the specific allegations. In a
general statement, Erika Reynoso, a spokesperson for the company, said: "Amazon
complies with the laws and regulations in all jurisdictions in which it
operates, and expects suppliers to adhere to our Supply Chain Standards. We
take allegations of human rights abuses seriously, including those related to
the use or export of forced labour. Whenever we find or receive proof of forced
labour, we take action."
The Australian Strategic Policy Institute, a think tank,
estimates that from 2017 to 2019, at least 80,000 people from Xinjiang, a
mostly Muslim region, were coerced to work in factories across the country as
part of what the Chinese government calls "labour transfer" programs.
The workers are often taken from their family homes and
generally have few rights, according to researchers, reported NBC News.
American companies are under increased pressure to ensure
their supply chains don't trace back to Xinjiang, where human rights groups
estimate roughly 1 million Uyghurs, Kazakhs and other ethnic minorities have
been detained in internment camps. Some of the facilities reportedly have
factories built inside them.
In December, US President Joe Biden signed a law instructing
officials to treat all imports from Xinjiang as tainted by forced labour unless
proven otherwise.
0 comments:
Post a Comment