Forced-Labour Probes Launched Into Nike, Dynasty Gold In China

Trade Update • July 13, 2023

ttawa’s corporate-ethics watchdog has announced investigations into a gold-mining corporation and the Canadian branch of Nike over the possible use of forced labour by China’s Uyghur minority in their supply chains. “These are very serious issues that have been brought to our attention,” Sheri Meyerhoffer, who is the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise, told reporters Tuesday. “Canadian companies are expected to respect Canadian standards for human rights and environmental protection when they work outside of Canada.”

Probes/Reports

The probes are the first investigations her office has launched since it was created by the Liberals in 2018. The two probes stem from complaints brought by a coalition of two dozen human-rights groups, which Meyerhoffer said had also been open to an outcome in which their complaints were resolved without the companies being named publicly.

Meyerhoffer said she plans to publish 11 more reports in the coming weeks on cases involving Uyghur people. “This is a warning sign for the government of Canada, Canadian corporations and also the Canadian public to exercise due diligence of what they’re purchasing,” said Mehmet Tohti, head of the Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project. This is an excerpt from the Canadian Press report.

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