France on Thursday elevated stress on the European Union to launch a proper investigation into Chinese on-line fast-fashion retailer Shein over the sale of child-like intercourse dolls and banned weapons on its market.
Foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot stated Shein was “clearly” in breach of European guidelines.
“I believe that the European Commission must take action. It cannot wait any longer,” Barrot stated in an interview with Franceinfo radio station.
France has moved to ban Shein over the illicit merchandise, and Shein suspended its market within the nation to “review and strenghten” how third-party sellers function on it, having already halted the sale of intercourse dolls worldwide.
“France alerts the European Commission and all member states to these serious breaches within its borders, and expects there are similar risks associated with this platform’s activities in other European Union countries,” France’s finance minister Roland Lescure and digital minister Anne le Henanff wrote in a letter to EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen.
France referred to as on the European Commission to conduct investigations “without delay” to discover out what led to the sale of unlawful objects on the platform, in accordance to the letter, which was despatched late on Wednesday and shared with journalists Thursday.
A European Commission spokesperson confirmed the letter was acquired, and stated the physique will assess and resolve on subsequent steps.
Shein is assessed as a “Very Large Online Platform” below the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA), and the Commission has powers to examine platforms for potential breaches of that legislation.
The Commission can impose fines of up to 6 p.c of an organization’s world annual turnover for confirmed breaches of the DSA.
Earlier this yr it requested Shein to present inside paperwork and data on dangers linked to unlawful items and content material on its market.
Separately, France is investigating different on-line platforms Temu, AliExpress and Wish in addition to Shein for alleged rule breaches that embody minors having the ability to entry pornographic content material by way of their marketplaces, the Paris prosecutor stated on Tuesday.
By Helen Reid
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