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| Afumetto Retepu (right), vice chairman of the Japan Uyghur Association, attends a news conference in Tokyo on Thursday. (Photo by=KYODO) |
[Asia News Communication = Reporter Reakkana] A Japanese association of Uyghurs urged major Japanese companies to investigate whether their operations in China are connected to factories allegedly benefiting from the forced labor of the Muslim minority in the Xinjiang region and if so to suspend such transactions, Kyodo reported.
The Japan Uyghur Association and rights advocacy group Human Rights Now, in their joint statement issued on Thursday, slammed 14 firms for being slow in taking action over possible human rights abuses in their supply chains compared to their global rivals. The call comes amid growing international criticism of Beijing's Uyghur crackdown, with the United States, the European Union, Britain, and Canada all imposing sanctions against China. Pressure has been mounting for Japan to take more action.
The 14, ranging from clothing retailers to electronic device manufacturers, were named last year in a report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute think tank identifying over 80 global brands "directly or indirectly benefiting from the use of Uyghur workers outside Xinjiang through abusive labor transfer programs." Tadashi Yanai, chairman, and CEO of Fast Retailing Co. which was identified among the 14, said Thursday his company is keeping tabs on its cotton supply chain to ensure none of its products are made with forced labor in Xinjiang.
