Identify the culprits
One group of Australian Uyghurs have taken a stand by suing Kmart. They claim that the retailer has played a role in the use of forced labor associated with the Uyghur ethnic group in China. This unprecedented step comes after strengthening pressure 【2】【3】【4】【5】 in the US and internationally surrounding abuses of human rights against the Uyghur people. Chinese authorities have claimed since 2017 that they had detained more than one million people from the region.
The Australian Uyghur Tangritagh Women’s Association, a group of Uyghur women, has been at the frontlines of this legal fight. They’re suing Kmart to make them publish documents. This would go a long way to substantiating claims regarding credible connections between Kmart’s suppliers and factories known to use forced Uyghur labor. Such practices have been documented in the large crackdown by Chinese authorities disguised as vocational training and poverty reduction.
Freya Dinshaw, the associate legal director at the Human Rights Law Centre, told Climate Home that they made the decision to bring the lawsuit. This new action exposes deeply troubling attempts at corporate accountability. Dinshaw joined us to elaborate on why current legislation in Australia fails to address modern slavery.
“We filed a legal action in the federal court to determine if Kmart has engaged in misleading conduct about the use of forced labour in their supply chain.” – Freya Dinshaw
The allegations are part of a larger context where numerous reports detail severe human rights violations against Uyghur people, including mass arrests, forced sterilisation, sexual violence, family separations, and torture. Ramila Chanisheff, president of the Australian Uyghur Tangritagh Women’s Association, described a horrific truth. She emphasized that each and every Uyghur person has close or distant relatives who have been sent to the camps for “re-education”.
Chanisheff draws attention to how little consistency there is in the reasons for these detentions. These practices encompass attending mosque services, sending family texts with Quranic verses and wearing traditional religious attire. The global community must not lower its strong condemnation of this atrocity. So far, big box retailers have failed to make significant policy or procedural changes.
“The ultimate aim is to know that Kmart doesn’t engage with supply chains that have Uyghur forced labour or any slave labour. And that also goes obviously for other industries as well.” – Ramila Chanisheff
In reality, Australia imports nearly $27 billion of those goods annually. Many of these products carry a high risk of being produced with forced labor. We see this starkly illustrated in the excess $25 billion economic link to human rights abuses happening overseas. Chanisheff argues that cheap clothing and strong economic ties with China should not come at the expense of fundamental human rights.
Legal counsel for the Uyghur cohort, including Jen Kanis from Maurice Blackburn Lawyers, emphasised that this first legal suit is only the tip of the iceberg. It has the potential to dramatically reshape the retail landscape. Commenting on the need to hold companies accountable for the human and environmental impacts of their supply chains, Kanis said,
“So I guess the outcome of this case is about the documents, but what this case may lead to is a misleading and deceptive conduct claim. And I think that that has implications for all retailers who make claims about ethical sourcing and being an ethical business.” – Jen Kanis
This new legal case kicks up important questions about Australia’s own Modern Slavery Act. Dinshaw said the legislation fails to sufficiently protect workers throughout the supply chain.
“The Australian Modern Slavery Act should be about protecting the people who put the clothes on our back, who pick the food that we eat and make the goods that we all consume. Yet it is a fairly weak piece of legislation in terms of only requiring reporting and not going further to require action by companies.” – Ramila Chanisheff
Canada and the United States have moved decisively. As a result, they have passed more stringent laws to prevent those products produced with forced labor from entering their domestic markets. Now advocates are calling on Australia to follow suit and take the necessary steps to make sure that products we can buy here are free from exploitation.
“We’re obviously all connected by the clothes we wear and the things we buy. And it’s estimated that $27 billion worth of goods that are at high risk of being made with forced labour are imported into Australia every year. So this problem is only increasing.” – Freya Dinshaw
Fortunately, the Australian Uyghurs are taking action to hold Kmart’s feet to the fire. Their work highlights a bigger movement, urging change within all industries that depend on global supply chains. If accepted, this case would establish a landmark precedent. It should even transform the way that Australian businesses approach ethical sourcing and transparency within their operations.
