Following a backlash in China, Intel apologized to its customers, partners, and the general public on Thursday for asking its suppliers not to purchase products or labor from the Xinjiang province.
Following restrictions imposed by “multiple governments,” the company recently published what it described as an annual letter to suppliers, dated December, in which it stated that it had been “required to ensure that its supply chain does not use any labor or source goods or services from the Xinjiang region.”
That letter, on the company’s website and in several languages, sparked a backlash in China from state and social media, with calls for a boycott of the company’s products.
Intel said its promise to avoid supply chains from Xinjiang was an expression of compliance with US law, not a statement of its view on the topic, in a Chinese-language statement posted on its official WeChat account on Thursday.
“We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused our valued Chinese customers, partners, and the general public. Intel is dedicated to working with China to become a trusted technology partner and to accelerate joint development “Intel (INTC.O) made the announcement.
More than a million people, mostly Uyghurs and members of other Muslim minorities, have been incarcerated in a huge system of camps in China’s far western region of Xinjiang in recent years, according to UN experts and rights groups. China denies human rights violations in Xinjiang and claims that its policies there aid in the fight against extremism.
