Major Australian surfwear company Rip Curl apologized on Sunday after Fairfax Media published images, which were taken in a factory near Pyongyang last year, showing the brand\u2019s ski jackets with the \u2018made in China\u2019 label.
\nA company statement said it was aware a few months earlier that its winter garments were found in North Korean factories. By then, 4000 units were already shipped to customers. The company blamed a supplier for illegally diverting part of its production to North Korea without Rip Curl\u2019s knowledge or consent.
\nWorkers in North Korea are routinely exploited. Based on statements from defectors, North Korean laborers are forced to work in \u2018slave-like\u2019 conditions for long hours with minimal or no pay. Those who defy orders were reportedly sent to work camps to reform their attitude and behavior.
\nOxfam Australia in a statement said Rip Curl had \u2018no excuse\u2019 for being unaware of its own supply chain operation because \u201ccompanies are responsible for human rights abuses within their businesses.\u201d In light of this event, Oxfam has urged Rip Curl and other Australian brands including Quicksilver and Billabong to publish details of the factories used in its procurement process.
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Major Australian surfwear company Rip Curl apologized on Sunday after Fairfax Media published images, which were taken in a factory near Pyongyang last year, showing the brand\u2019s ski jackets with the \u2018made in China\u2019 label. A company statement said it was aware a few months earlier that its winter garments were found in North Korean […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":6800,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4467","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n