Fashion mogul Ralph Lauren is being investigated for using Uyghurs as forced labourers in China

 Fashion mogul Ralph Lauren is being investigated for using Uyghurs as forced labourers in China

The announcement comes after comparable investigations into Dynasty Gold and Nike Canada were launched by the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) last month.

Ottawa: On Tuesday, Canada's corporate watchdog announced it was looking into claims that the fashion house employed China's Uyghur minority as forced labour. The allegations stem from Ralph Lauren's Canadian division.

The announcement comes after comparable investigations into Dynasty Gold and Nike Canada were launched by the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) last month.

In a complaint submitted to the watchdog last year, a group of 28 civil society organisations said that Ralph Lauren Canada "has supply connection to Chinese companies that profit or profit from the used for Uyghur forced labour."

The Ralph Lauren allegation, in my opinion, merits an inquiry, said Ombudsperson Sheri Meyerhoffer in a statement.

She pointed out that the brand's American parent company has contested Canadian jurisdiction over the situation, claiming that its subsidiary "is not responsible for decision-making" and all of its activities are supervised by the business's American headquarters.

In a statement, the Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project in Ottawa expressed its appreciation for the probe.

There is solid proof that Ralph Lauren is associated with multiple Chinese businesses that rely on forced labour from Uyghurs in their supply networks, the statement said.

According to rights organisations, more than a million Uyghurs and other mostly Muslim minorities have been imprisoned in re-education camps in western China's Xinjiang province, where they have been subjected to numerous atrocities, including forced labour.

The crackdown in Xinjiang has been referred to as genocide by lawmakers in Western countries, notably Canada, and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has labelled the persecution of Uyghurs "crimes against humanity."

Beijing disputes the allegations and refers to the buildings as vocational schools intended to combat radicalism.