The United Nations has requested that South Korea clarify allegations that companies like Samsung and LG have purchased goods from businesses involved in human rights abuses in China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

According to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights(OHCHR) on Thursday, its special rapporteurs handling human rights sent a letter to the South Korean government on March 12 inquiring on this matter.

The letter said Samsung, LG, LG Display, Fila and Hazzys are potentially involved in rights abuses including alleged forced labor, arbitrary detention and human trafficking through their supply chains in China.

The rapporteurs said a similar letter was sent to the companies to seek their response to these allegations.

Aside from the companies mentioned, the UN agency said there could be more South Korean firms implicated.

The letter expressed concern about allegations that multinational companies sourcing from factories in China are not allowed access to exercise appropriate oversight and human rights due diligence.

A Foreign Ministry official in Seoul said they haven't found any Korean companies that have done business with firms linked to human rights abuses in Xinjiang. The government sent a letter to that effect to the rapporteurs on Wednesday. The official said, however, that related investigations are ongoing.