Chinese stars break ties with Nike, H&M over remarks on treatment of Uyghurs

After H&M and Nike sparked outrage for their stance on human rights abuses in the Xinjiang region by the Chinese state, calling for a boycott of the brands, now actors from the country have joined in their boycott of the brands. 

The ruling Communist Party criticized H&M for saying it would stop buying cotton from the northwestern Chinese region. H&M faces boycott in China over stance on treatment of Uyghurs

Now, in response, China Central Television said on its social media account, “For enterprises that touch the bottom line of our country, the response is very clear: don’t buy!”

Celebrities including Wang Yibo, a popular singer and actor, and Eason Chan announced they were breaking endorsement contracts with the likes of H&M, Nike and Adidas. Singer and actress Song Qian, a former member of Korean pop group f(x) who also is known as Victoria Song, and actor Huang Xuan, also announced they would end endorsement contracts with H&M. Actress Tang Songyun said she was breaking ties with Nike.

Also, H&M products were missing from China’s most popular e-commerce platforms, Alibaba Group’s TMall and JD.com. 

In January, Washington imposed a ban on imports of cotton from Xinjiang, a major supplier to clothing producers for Western markets.