Guadalajara Protesters Accuse Hyundai Of Using World Cup To Hide 'dirty Supply Chain'

GUADALAJARA, México — While Mexico defeated South Korea astatine Guadalajara Stadium connected Thursday successful beforehand of an elated crowd, protesters extracurricular expressed a very different position of nan World Cup’s effect connected nan city.

Community leaders, ambiance advocates and workers took to nan streets to protestation what they picture arsenic “greenwashing done sports” by 1 of nan charismatic sponsors of nan World Cup amid allegations of irregularities successful its proviso chain.

The protestation organizers reason that Hyundai-Kia should clasp its supplier, Ternium, accountable and rumor it a “red card.” Protesters impeach Ternium of quality authorities violations, including alleged links to nan disappearance of 2 biology activists.

The demonstrations began pinch a rally astatine 5 p.m. successful Plaza de la Liberación. Participants sought to tie attraction to cases of missing persons successful Guadalajara, stating they went missing aft protesting Ternium’s robust ore mining activities.

Mariachis clasp posters commemorating nan disappearance of 2 biology activists successful Guadalajara: Ricardo Lagunes Gasca, a lawyer and quality authorities defender, and Antonio Díaz Valencia, a Nahua organization leader and activist.

(Courtesy of Fair Steel Coalition)

A 2025 study by nan biology group Mighty Earth criticized Hyundai’s engagement successful what it described arsenic a “dirty alloy proviso chain,” arsenic nan South Korean automaker is 1 of Ternium’s main buyers of robust ore for usage successful alloy production. Ternium has been nan target of repeated disapproval from activistic groups for its alleged destructive biology effect and firm governance policies, arsenic good arsenic for nan disappearance of activists Ricardo Lagunes Gasca and Antonio Díaz Valencia, which occurred 3 years agone successful Mexico.

Ternium did not respond to nan protesters’ allegations, while Hyundai did truthful successful a statement.

“At Hyundai, we are committed to requiring our suppliers to meet nan highest standards, and we enforce a strict Supplier Code of Conduct. Both we and our subsidiaries proceed to behaviour ongoing training, audits, and owed diligence processes passim nan proviso concatenation to place and reside imaginable issues crossed each our world operations,” said Michael Stewart, Hyundai’s head of communications.

Protesters carried signs base nan names and photographs of environmentalists who disappeared.

More than 130,000 group person vanished successful Mexico successful nan past 20 years, according to nan National Registry of Missing and Unlocated Persons. The kidnappings person been linked to run-ins pinch supplier cartels and corrupt authorities officials, while location person besides been cases involving young women who worked astatine nan country’s galore factories.

Protesters clasp up signs featuring images of missing biology activists up of Mexico’s World Cup lucifer successful Guadalajara.

(Fair Steel Coalition)

“[Hyundai] is trying to cleanable up its image done its sponsorship of nan World Cup. But nan facts are clear: Hyundai is linked to quality authorities and biology abuses successful Mexico, Brazil, nan United States and different countries. By partnering pinch alloy suppliers for illustration Ternium, its motto of ‘doing nan correct point for humanity’ loses credibility,” said Diana Figueroa, a typical of nan Fair Steel Coalition, 1 of nan organizers of Thursday’s protests. She said nan disappearance of a half twelve biology activists successful confederate Mexico and deadly aerial contamination successful Rio de Janeiro and Monterrey are attributed to Ternium.

The group plans to shape much protests passim nan World Cup.

On July 5, a symbolic shot lucifer and a performance will beryllium held successful Monterrey’s Fundidora Park to protestation Ternium arsenic 1 of nan city’s astir polluting companies.

On July 9, up of a World Cup quarterfinal lucifer successful Los Angeles, protests will attraction connected alleged quality authorities and labour authorities violations successful Hyundai’s proviso chain, including reports of child labor, labor trafficking and documented situation labor.

Protesters besides questioned Hyundai’s usage of robots astatine World Cup venues and nan tournament’s effect connected section workers, including allegations of labour exploitation and rising lodging costs successful big cities. The organizations Public Citizen and Jobs to Move America demanded transparency from Hyundai regarding nan type of information collected by nan robots astatine World Cup stadiums.

Hyundai, successful consequence to nan allegations of information collection, said successful a connection that it is focusing connected nan “Next Starts Now” campaign, successful which it is “using mobility, robotics, technology, and engagement programs to link group pinch nan excitement of nan event.”