'Burning Nike'... China Launches 'NO Nike·H&M' Boycott Movement Amid Xinjiang Human Rights Criticism

A clip from a video posted by a Chinese netizen on the 25th. They are burning shoes in protest against Nike. Photo by Weibo capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Nana] Recently, as the United States has raised human rights abuses issues concerning China's Xinjiang and Hong Kong, escalating tensions between the US and China, Chinese netizens have launched a massive boycott campaign against fashion companies that declared they would not purchase raw materials from Xinjiang.

Earlier, Swedish fashion company H&M posted a statement on its website in September last year expressing "deep concern over reports related to forced labor and ethnic discrimination in Xinjiang," and announced that it had "stopped purchasing cotton produced in the region."

At the time, the statement did not attract much attention, but on the 22nd, when the US, mobilizing the European Union (EU), the United Kingdom, Canada, and others, announced sanctions against Chinese officials citing human rights abuses against the Uyghur people in Xinjiang, Chinese consumers' anger was directed at H&M.

Currently, on Chinese online shopping malls such as Tmall, H&M-related products cannot be found in searches, and some map apps also fail to show results when searching for H&M. Nike also expressed concern over reports related to forced labor in Xinjiang and stated that it does not source products from the Xinjiang region, making it a target of the Chinese consumers' boycott campaign.

On the 25th, a Chinese netizen posted a video on the social networking service (SNS) Weibo showing Nike shoes being burned. Additionally, Wang Yibo, a popular Chinese star and Nike advertising model, announced that he would terminate all cooperation with the company.

Furthermore, Chinese netizens have added Uniqlo, Fila, Adidas, and New Balance to the boycott list, posting the statements these companies have released regarding Xinjiang alongside.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.