BEIJING (Reuters) – Burberry has lost a Chinese brand ambassador and its signature tartan design was scrubbed from a popular video game, becoming the first luxury brand to be attacked by the Chinese backlash against Western allegations of abuse in Xinjiang.
China on Friday sanctioned organizations and individuals in the UK over what it called “lies and disinformation” about Xinjiang, days after Britain imposed sanctions for alleged human rights violations in the West China region.
Burberry is a member of the Better Cotton Initiative, a group that promotes sustainable cotton production, and said in October that it was suspending approval of cotton sourced from Xinjiang, citing human rights concerns.
Award-winning Chinese actress Zhou Dongyu terminated her contract with Burberry as brand ambassador because Burberry “has not clearly and publicly expressed its position on Xinjiang cotton,” her agency said Thursday.
The company’s iconic plaid design was also removed from clothing worn by characters in Tencent Holdings Ltd’s wildly popular video game “Honor of Kings”, according to a post on the game’s official Weibo account, which won praise. from Chinese netizens.
Burberry China did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. According to the website, Burberry cotton is sourced from the United States, Australia, Turkey, India and Egypt.
The backlash – particularly in social and traditional media – has also enveloped mass brands such as H&M, Adidas AG and Nike Inc, who had previously expressed critical views about working conditions in Xinjiang, China’s largest cotton-producing region.
Activists and UN law experts have accused China of mass detention, torture, forced labor and sterilization of Uyghurs in Xinjiang. China denies these claims, saying its actions in the region are necessary to counter extremism.
In a letter to UK lawmakers in November, Burberry said it had no operations in Xinjiang or partnered with suppliers based there, adding that it did not endorse any form of modern slavery among its suppliers, including forced, forced or involuntary labor. prison labor. .
The China National Textile and Apparel Council released a statement on Friday urging international brands to stop “wrong behavior”, including excluding Xinjiang cotton from their supply chain, out of respect for Chinese customers.
Hong Kong lawmaker Regina Ip said she would stop buying Burberry.
“Burberry is one of my favorite brands. But I will stop buying Burberry products. I support my country in boycotting companies spreading lies about Xinjiang, ”Ip wrote on her Twitter account.
Reporting by Ryan Woo and Beijing editors; Editing by Edwina Gibbs