France no longer seeks full suspension of Shein over childlike sex dolls

France is no longer seeking a looming three-month full suspension of Shein over the sale of childlike sex dolls and banned weapons. Instead, it wants Shein to prove that its products comply with the law.

During a Paris court hearing, a lawyer for the state, Renaud Le Gunehec, demanded that Shein put a series of controls on its site, including age verification and filtering, to prevent minors from interacting with pornographic content.

Le Gunehec reportedly asked the court to enforce the suspension of Shein’s marketplace until it can present evidence of such controls to the French independent administrative agency Arcom.

Shein hit back with its own accusations of discriminatory treatment.

"Our client is ‌the subject of a cabal, a media cabal, a political cabal and I would even say discriminatory treatment," Julia Bombardier, one of two lawyers representing Shein, told the court, according to Reuters.

Kami Haeri, who also represented Shein, said that the state’s “disproportionate” and "not even legal" demands are irrelevant since Shein already suspended its marketplace in France on November 5th. However, the site selling Shein-branded clothing remains accessible.

According to Reuters, the French government said it had examined 200,000 Shein packages at Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport in 24 hours and found that 80% ⁠of the products were non-compliant. Bombardier, however, expressed doubt, saying that it’s not possible to check that many packages in one day.

Earlier in November, the French Directorate General for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF) discovered that Shein has been selling childlike sex dolls.

According to DGCCRF’s statement made at the time, the description and categorization of those dolls “leaves little doubt as to the child pornography nature of the content.” Additionally, the regulatory body claims there are no filters in place that would limit access to this “pornographic content” for minors or vulnerable audiences.

The administration immediately informed the public prosecutor, as well as ARCOM.

In the statement, DGCCRF reminded that distribution of pedopornographic content carries a 7-year prison sentence and a fine of €100,000 ($116,455).

The Paris prosecutor supported the demand to make Shein prove its compliance by providing evidence that it stopped ⁠all sales of illegal goods, but suggested that a three-month suspension could be considered "disproportionate."

The decision for the ongoing hearing will be announced on December 19th.