Washington DC [US], April 27 (ANI): A New York Times article, citing information from the Campaign for Uyghurs (CFU), raises allegations that materials used in products made by Pop Mart may be connected to forced labour in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, CFU said in a press release.
The report focuses on Pop Mart’s popular collectible toys, including its Labubu dolls, and says cotton used in some production could originate in Xinjiang. CFU notes the region produces more than 90 percent of China’s cotton and has been the subject of widespread allegations of forced labour and human rights abuses against Uyghurs.
Rushan Abbas, founder and executive director of CFU, said credible evidence suggests Pop Mart used Xinjiang cotton linked to Uyghur forced labour for products entering the United States, one of the company’s largest markets, and accused the company of disregarding U.S. law and international human rights norms.
CFU says it obtained information from anonymous sources about Pop Mart’s supply-chain practices, reviewed and verified the material, and filed a complaint through U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Forced Labour Allegation Portal in August 2025. The organization coordinated with The New York Times to publicize its findings.
The report frames the claims under the Uyghur Forced Labour Prevention Act (UFLPA), which presumes that goods produced wholly or in part in the Uyghur region are made with forced labour and are therefore barred from entering the U.S. market. CFU contends Pop Mart has not provided adequate transparency, traceability documentation, or evidence of compliance with UFLPA requirements.
U.S. lawmakers quoted in the report reacted critically. John Moolenaar, chair of the House Select Committee on China, described the allegations as unsurprising and unacceptable, and Christopher H. Smith, co-chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, said Pop Mart must demonstrate that products sold in the U.S. are not tied to forced labour.
CFU also highlighted a past Pop Mart statement that criticized Adidas China’s claims about Xinjiang cotton as baseless, which CFU interprets as a potential indicator that Pop Mart may have engaged with suppliers sourcing cotton from Xinjiang. Abbas invoked a personal connection, referring to her sister Gulshan Abbas, who she says disappeared into China’s prison system years ago, and suggested people like her could be part of forced-labour systems linked to cotton production.
CFU urged the Department of Homeland Security and the Forced Labour Enforcement Task Force to add Pop Mart to the UFLPA Entity List, which would bar its products from U.S. entry until the company can show a transparent, verified supply chain free of forced labour. The group also called on retailers, online platforms, and consumers to stop selling or buying Pop Mart products and stressed the need to enforce existing laws.
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