German chemicals maker BASF has announced it is withdrawing from two joint ventures in Xinjiang following media reports about allegations of human rights abuses involving partner companies, but BASF’s CEO says this is beyond He said it was crossing a line that should not be allowed.
BASF said in a statement on Friday that “regular due diligence measures, including internal and external audits, have found no evidence of human rights violations in the two joint ventures,” while a recent report found that “BASF’s values and “It shows inconsistent activity.”
On Monday, a group of politicians from around the world urged BASF to withdraw She is from Xinjiang, a region in northwest China where human rights abuses by the state have been widely reported.
The politicians’ letter indicates that people employed by BASF’s Chinese partner company, Xinjiang Markor Chemical Industry (also known as Markor Chemical), are accompanying Chinese government officials to travel to the Uighurs as part of a government effort by human rights groups. This was in response to reports in German media that he had visited the homes of the families of the deceased. It is said to be used to spy on people and indoctrinate them.
The alleged visits are said to have taken place in 2018 and 2019, at the height of the Chinese government’s campaign to suppress Uighurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang. The Chinese government describes its policies in Xinjiang as anti-terrorism and poverty reduction measures, and claims to promote ethnic harmony in the region.
BASF said on Friday it had decided to exit two joint ventures in the last three months of 2023, citing the “market environment and product carbon footprint” of chemicals produced at its Xinjiang factories. Announced. It said it would accelerate that process following recent reports about Markor Chemical. Although BASF has facilities in other parts of China, this joint venture between the two is BASF’s only project in Xinjiang.
BASF CEO Martin Brudermüller met on Friday with a group of parliamentarians including German MP Reinhard Bütikofer and British MP Iain Duncan Smith. The letter requesting the talks was coordinated by the China Interparliamentary Alliance, a bipartisan group of lawmakers focused on China.
Brudermuller was quoted as saying during the meeting that several internal and external audits since 2019 “did not reveal any wrongdoing or anything that undermined our standards.” The latest allegations regarding partner companies are said to indicate a “red line that must not be crossed.” It had been surpassed.
Pressed by Japanese politician Alfiya Eli about other reports about rape, forced marriage, forced consumption of pork and alcohol, and home visits to Uyghurs in Xinjiang, she said the accounts were “unimaginable in a normal mind. ” Brudermuller said. , said evidence of abuses in Xinjiang “reminds me of the dark ages of many other areas of history, including my country.” He stressed that BASF is “not involved in this in any way.” It is not alleged that Mr. Marcol was involved in any rape or other abuse.
Brudermuller did not elaborate on the timetable for the withdrawal, but said he hoped it would be within the next few months.
Mr. Eli said BASF’s decision to withdraw from Xinjiang was “groundbreaking and historically significant.”
“We applaud the steps taken by BASF and take them at their word that they want to exit as soon as possible. By making the decision to exit, BASF has given up all the excuses that other companies have hidden for staying. It has been removed.”
According to BASF most recent According to the full-year financial statements, the company’s companies in Greater China accounted for 14% of its total sales in 2022.
BASF has been approached for further comment.
