Probe Against Sartorial Tycoon Ralph Lauren For Using Uyghurs In China As Forced Labour

This announcement has come just like similar probes conducted for brands like ‘Nike Canada’ and the Canadian mining firm, ‘Dynasty Gold’ by the Ombudperson for Responsible Enterprise started last month. 

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On Tuesday, August 15, 2023 Canada’s corporate watchdog started an investigation against the Canadian unit of the fashion giant, ‘Ralph Lauren’ for using forced labour from China’s Uyghur minority.

The announcement follows a series of similar probes of ‘Nike Canada’ and ‘Dynasty Gold’ which is the Canadian mining firm. These investigations have been conducted by the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) starting last month in July 2023.

Last year, a coalition of twenty eight civil society organizations filed a complaint with the watchdog alleging that, "Ralph Lauren Canada has supply relationships with Chinese companies that use or benefit from the use of Uyghur forced labour."

The ombudsperson Sheri Meyerhoffer said in a statement that, "I have decided that the Ralph Lauren complaint warrants an investigation."

Ralph Lauren’s United States parent company has disputed Canadian jurisdiction over the matter and have argued that its subsidiary "is not responsible for decision-making” and all of its operations are overseen by the company’s headquarters located in the United States Of America.

The Ottawa - based Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project supported the investigation in a statement saying, "there is credible evidence that Ralph Lauren is linked to numerous Chinese companies that use Uyghur forced labour in their supply chains."

Human rights groups have said that more than one million Uyghurs and other majorly Muslim minorities have been held in re-education camps in the Chinese Xinjiang region that include abuse such as forced labour.

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Lawmakers in Western countries which include Canada have called the crackdown in Xinjiang a genocide, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has referred to the ill treatment of the Uyghurs as crimes against humanity.

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On the other hand Beijing continues to deny accusations describing the facilities as vocational centers made to curb extremism.

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