A Chinese milk tea chain and a China-made children’s doll are on the receiving end of consumer backlash in Southeast Asia, particularly Vietnam, over their alleged acknowledgement of Beijing’s claims to the South China Sea.
Sales of “Baby Three Doll”, a Chinese-made doll popular with kids and Gen-Z, are tanking in Vietnam following an online outcry over imagery on the dolls’ face that’s said to resemble the so-called nine-dash line, which designates Beijing’s claim over vast swathes of the South China Sea.
Retailers were slashing prices to try to entice consumers to buy the toy, according to Vietnamese media. The dolls became available in Vietnam in September last year, and sales of the dolls reportedly reached $1.6 million between September and December.
Vietnam’s industry and trade ministry has weighed in, calling for an inspection of the toys and warning that they were “affecting national security and territorial sovereignty”.
Chagee, a Chinese milk tea chain, is also dealing with angry consumers. The company is preparing to open its first Vietnam outlet in Ho Chi Minh City. Yet customers noted that its mobile app uses a map that includes the nine-dash line.
Outraged Vietnamese flooded Chagee’s Facebook page with complaints, leading the chain to limit who can comment on its Facebook posts. That pushed angry Vietnamese users to post comment on Chagee’s Malaysia Facebook page instead.
Chagee has since removed the map on its app. The chain did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
China’s relationship with Southeast Asia
China is the top trading partner for Vietnam, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Yet despite their close economic ties, these Southeast Asian countries disagree with Beijing’s claims over the resource-rich South China Sea.
An international tribunal in The Hague rejected China’s territorial claims in 2016. Yet Beijing dismissed that ruling and has often deployed its navy to protect what it argues is its territory.
In Southeast Asia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Indonesia, the Philippines, and Brunei all have competing claims over territory in the South China Sea.
