H&M boycott following Xinjiang cotton row: When China protests with its purse

Amid calls for a boycott by Chinese Internet users, fashion brand H&M suddenly found that its online stores were taken off Chinese online shopping platforms and its outlets could no longer be found on Chinese map applications. The Swedish retailer, along with sports brands Adidas and Nike, are the latest multinationals to face boycotts after getting dragged into an ongoing diplomatic row between Beijing and Western governments over rights abuses in Xinjiang. Boycotts are essentially a way for regular people to show their support for the government, along with displaying loyalty and fealty, said Asst Prof Dylan Loh of NTU’s Public Policy and Global Affairs Division. "Many governments try to pressure multinationals to conform to certain standards but none do it as well as China because of the sheer size of the market," he said.

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Photo: Fernand De Canne on Unsplash