Beijing [China]May 18 (ANI): Despite being ranked second in the world in cotton production, China has been accused by critics of labor abuse in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to avoid political influence. They are under great international pressure, encouraging them to look elsewhere for supplies.

In this scenario, Uzbekistan, the world’s sixth-largest cotton-producing country, has emerged as a preferred supplier as buyers turn their backs on supply from China after a decade of international boycott of forced labor. Written by Mimilau of the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

Uzbek activists warned about forced labor in the country’s cotton industry more than a decade ago when millions of people, including doctors, teachers and even children, were mobilized to bring in cash crops. started.

Several sanctions followed, with over 300 brands and retailers signing an international boycott of Uzbekistan’s cotton and textiles.

Since then, Uzbekistan has undertaken drastic reforms to end child labor and forced labor by attempting to privatize cotton farms and raise the value chain, Lau wrote.

Meanwhile, China has been accused worldwide of sending Uighur Muslims in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to mass detention camps, interfering with their religious activities and exposing them to abuse, including forced labor.

Meanwhile, Beijing has strongly denied being involved in human rights abuses against Uighurs in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, and reports from journalists, NGOs and former detainees have surfaced, brutal to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) ethnic community. Emphasizes crackdowns.

The United States banned imports of cotton and tomato products from the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in January, followed by Canada and the United Kingdom. Many international brands, including HM, Nike and Ralph Lauren, have also declared their products not made of cotton in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, according to SCMP reports.

Chinese consumers and state media have called for boycotts of companies, but companies like Ralph Lauren have argued that “supply chain diversification has become a brand’s corporate strategy.”

Researchers reported that there are signs that US companies are being cut off from Chinese suppliers to avoid political risks.

According to Fundy, an assistant professor at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, who specializes in fashion retail and marketing, the impact is likely to spread from cotton to other sectors.

Meanwhile, according to official sources close to Uzbekistan’s cotton industry, Central Asian countries expect a “massive influx of trade and investment” in the next 18-24 months.

“What’s happening in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is actually a window of opportunity for Uzbekistan. Large multinational brands showing interest in sourcing from Uzbekistan because they are concerned about exposure in China. And retailers are on the rise, “said a source. ..

Uzbekistan could also be a source of Chinese cotton, which consumes much more than it produces, Lau writes.

Meanwhile, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway and Sweden have issued a joint statement expressing serious concern about the human rights situation of Uighurs and other Turkish Muslim minorities in China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Announced.

These Scandinavian and Baltic statements submitted to the United Nations by Danish Permanent Representative Martin Ville Hermann on Wednesday “have serious concerns about the information presented in the report and statement on the human rights situation in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. . Uighur Autonomous Region. ”(ANI)