Protests erupt at China's largest iPhone factory
Large-scale protests erupted at Foxconn's sprawling iPhone factory in central China's Zhengzhou, as images circulating on Weibo and Twitter on Wednesday showed.
Videos showed hundreds of workers marching down a road in broad daylight, some being confronted by a line of people in hazmat suits and riot police.
Another clip from a livestreamed video showed dozens of workers at night confronting a row of police officers and a police vehicle with flashing lights, shouting, "Defend our rights! Defend our rights!"< /p>
A worker dragged a metal barricade across the ground, the banner saying in the background as clouds of smoke billowed from the vehicle: "They're rushing! Smoke bombs! Tear gas!"
A photo taken during the day showed the charred remains of a door, apparently set on fire overnight.
The Weibo hashtag "Foxconn Riots" appeared to be censored midday Wednesday, while some text messages referencing large-scale protests at the Foxconn factory remained online.
Foxconn, also known by its official name Hon Hai Precision Industry, is the world's largest contract electronics manufacturer assembling gadgets for many international brands.
Foxconn, Apple's main contractor, has seen an increase in COVID-19 cases at its Zhengzhou site in recent months, leading the company to shut down the sprawling complex in a bid to control the virus.
Panic workers then fled the site en masse on foot following allegations of poor conditions at the factory, which employs hundreds of thousands of workers.
Foxconn is the largest private sector employer in China, with more than one million people working across the country in about 30 factories and research institutes.
Zhengzhou is the crown jewel of Taiwanese society, producing iPhones in quantities never seen elsewhere.
The company did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment on the unrest.
AFP
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Large-scale protests erupted at Foxconn's sprawling iPhone factory in central China's Zhengzhou, as images circulating on Weibo and Twitter on Wednesday showed.
Videos showed hundreds of workers marching down a road in broad daylight, some being confronted by a line of people in hazmat suits and riot police.
Another clip from a livestreamed video showed dozens of workers at night confronting a row of police officers and a police vehicle with flashing lights, shouting, "Defend our rights! Defend our rights!"< /p>
A worker dragged a metal barricade across the ground, the banner saying in the background as clouds of smoke billowed from the vehicle: "They're rushing! Smoke bombs! Tear gas!"
A photo taken during the day showed the charred remains of a door, apparently set on fire overnight.
The Weibo hashtag "Foxconn Riots" appeared to be censored midday Wednesday, while some text messages referencing large-scale protests at the Foxconn factory remained online.
Foxconn, also known by its official name Hon Hai Precision Industry, is the world's largest contract electronics manufacturer assembling gadgets for many international brands.
Foxconn, Apple's main contractor, has seen an increase in COVID-19 cases at its Zhengzhou site in recent months, leading the company to shut down the sprawling complex in a bid to control the virus.
Panic workers then fled the site en masse on foot following allegations of poor conditions at the factory, which employs hundreds of thousands of workers.
Foxconn is the largest private sector employer in China, with more than one million people working across the country in about 30 factories and research institutes.
Zhengzhou is the crown jewel of Taiwanese society, producing iPhones in quantities never seen elsewhere.
The company did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment on the unrest.
AFP
Please share this story:
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