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The United States has paused importing goods from Chinese sports brand Li Ning after reports the company may have used labor from North Korea to create their products.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) made an announcement on Tuesday that it was not allowing any merchandise produced or manufactured by Li Ning into the country after an investigation found the company uses North Korean labor.
This isn't the first time that concerns have been raised about Li Ning's labor practices. The company was previously under fire for allegedly using materials and labor from China's northwestern region of Xinjiang. The Chinese government has been accused of committing human rights crimes against the Uyghur population and allegedly detained millions of people in large camps to work in Xinjiang factories against their will.
Under U.S. law, goods may not be imported if they were produced or manufactured in North Korea or used North Korean citizens to create their products unless there is substantial proof they were not made with forced labor. Li Ning has 30 days to prove their goods weren't assembled under these conditions.
"Such merchandise will not be entitled to entry unless the importer provides clear and convincing evidence that their merchandise was not produced with convict labor, forced labor, or indentured labor under penal sanctions within 30 days of notice of detention," CBP said in a statement.
If the company fails to provide the evidence required, its merchandise may be subject to seizure and forfeit. CBP did not provide any specific details regarding the investigation into Li Ning's supply chain or where the alleged labor concerns occurred in North Korea.
However, when Newsweek questioned CBP about the investigation, a spokesperson said CBP does not comment on specific investigations but "CBP continually investigates allegations of forced labor and initiates enforcement actions based on evidence collected during the course of the investigation."
Newsweek reached out to Li Ning for comment. CBP said they have not had any contact with the company since the announcement.
Li Ning was founded in 1990 by the Olympic gold medalist gymnast of the same name. The company is one of China's biggest makers of sporting apparel, shoes and accessories. It has a market cap of about 151.5 billion Hong Kong dollars (19 billion in U.S. dollars), CNN reported.
Norway also took action against the Chinese sports brand this month. The European country's sovereign wealth fund sold off its shares in Li Ning over concerns of "unacceptable risk that the company contributes to serious human rights violations" in Xinjiang.
The Biden administration previously announced it would no longer accept imported goods from China's region of Xinjiang unless it could be proven they weren't created with forced labor. The U.S. said China is committing human rights abuse against the Uygur population and needs to be held accountable.
Relatedly, several countries boycotted the Beijing Olympics over China's "egregious human rights abuses and atrocities in Xinjiang." The Chinese government has been accused of committing genocide and forcing sterilization of its Uyghur population.
The Chinese Communist Party has always denied these allegations.
Update 3/16/22, 10:29 a.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
Update 3/16/22, 2:26 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from Customs and Border Protection.
