Siemens’ CEO criticises Beijing’s Hong Kong, Xinjiang policies, but firm ‘still committed’ to China

On allegations of human rights abuses in Xinjiang, CEO Joe Kaeser says ‘we should neither tolerate all of this in our companies nor accept it without consequences’
Firm says Kaeser ‘voiced his concerns over complicated issues because the company cares for the development of China’

Siemens

Wendy Wuin Beijing

Published: 7:20pm, 14 Sep, 2020

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German industrial giant Siemens’ commitment to China “remains unchanged”, the company said in a statement published by a Chinese state newspaper just days after its chief executive spoke out about Beijing’s hardline policies in Hong Kong and Xinjiang.

In an interview with German newspaper Die Zeit, Joe Kaeser, who took over as Siemens’ CEO in 2013, said the company was “watching the current developments in Hong Kong, but also in the province of Xinjiang carefully and with concern”.

His comments were unusual because foreign companies in China have tended to not speaking openly on matters deemed sensitive to Beijing out of fear of retaliation.

Siemens says its CEO “voiced his concerns over complicated issues because the company cares for the development of China”. Photo: Reuters

Beijing introduced a national security law for Hong Kong on July 1, sparking criticism from Western countries and business groups that it would erode the city’s autonomy under “one country, two systems”.

“We have always said: as long as Beijing adheres to the one country, two systems agreement, German business can handle it,” Kaeser said.

“But it is indeed unusual that this understanding has not been clearly confirmed by China for some time.”

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On the subject of Xinjiang, where Beijing has been accused of establishing internment camps for up to a million Uygur Muslims, Kaeser said: “We categorically reject any form of oppression, forced labour and involvement in human rights violations.

“In principle, we should neither tolerate all of this in our companies nor accept it without consequences from our partners.”

In an article published by Chinese nationalist tabloid Global Times over the weekend, Siemens said Kaeser “voiced his concerns over complicated issues because the company cares for the development of China, whether it’s Xinjiang, Hong Kong or anywhere else”.

“Our commitment to [the] China [market] remains unchanged,” it said.

The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the South China Morning Post.

European companies with a presence in China are facing growing pressure from stakeholders and politicians in their home countries, the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China said last week.

As well as having to conduct tighter scrutiny to ensure forced labour was not being used to manufacture their products, the companies were prevented from investing in new projects in Xinjiang even though energy prices there were much lower, the chamber said.

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European governments have repeatedly complained about the lack of reciprocity on market access for their companies investing in China and grown wary of the dependency on China for their supply of critical goods.

The Covid-19 pandemic, Chinese diplomats’ Wolf Warrior tactics, Beijing’s policies on Hong Kong and the alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang have all strained Beijing’s relations with Europe, and calls are mounting in Brussels for the EU to take a tougher stance on China.

Siemens has had a presence in China since the 1980s and employs about 33,000 people in the country, which is its second-largest foreign market.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Siemens says its commitment to China ‘remains unchanged’

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