China, H&M Boycott Spreads... 'NO H&M'

'엽기적인 그녀2' Actress Ends H&M Model Contract…Agency Firmly Opposes "Fabrication of Rumors"
China Retaliates Against EU's Xinjiang Human Rights Sanctions with H&M Boycott Campaign

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Jo Young-shin] In China, a boycott movement against Sweden's world-renowned fashion brand 'H&M' is spreading rapidly amid the human rights abuses in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. With the Communist Youth League of China, the youth organization of the Chinese Communist Party, encouraging the boycott, tensions between China and the United States appear to be extending to the European Union (EU).

According to Chinese media including the state-run Global Times on the 25th, the boycott against H&M has spread like wildfire in China immediately after H&M announced the previous day that it would not use raw materials (cotton) produced in Xinjiang and would not cooperate with garment factories in Xinjiang.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

The Communist Youth League of China took the lead in the H&M boycott. Through Weibo (China's version of Twitter), the Youth League questioned, "Do you want to make money in China while spreading false information about Xinjiang?" thereby inciting the boycott.

In another online post, the Youth League wrote that when Yang Jiechi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party, met with U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken in Alaska, "the United States acted arrogantly toward China," and "the Chinese people will not accept this."

Reflecting this atmosphere, searches for H&M-related products have been suspended on major Chinese online shopping malls such as Taobao, JD.com, and Tmall.

Additionally, Baidu (China's version of Naver and Daum) has stopped its map service that shows H&M store locations, and Huawei, Xiaomi, and Vivo have blocked downloads of the H&M app from their smartphone app stores.

As the atmosphere toward H&M in China turned hostile, the agencies of H&M's Chinese male and female models, actor Huang Xuan and Song Qian (Victoria), respectively announced the termination of all contracts with H&M, stating their firm opposition to "the fabrication of rumors about China and human rights." Song Qian is an actress who played the female lead opposite actor Cha Tae-hyun in the movie 'My Sassy Girl 2.'

Regarding the boycott movement against H&M in China, H&M China issued an official statement saying, "The headquarters always adheres to the principles of openness and transparency in global supply chain management. H&M does not represent any political stance."

The Global Times reported that China is one of the top four markets in terms of H&M's sales, and the boycott could cast a shadow over H&M's headquarters management.