US expands import ban to 37 Chinese companies over Uyghur forced labour

The US has added 37 more Chinese companies to its import ban list due to alleged human rights violations involving Uyghurs.

US law presumes goods from Xinjiang Autonomous Uyghur Region are made with forced labour due to widespread allegations of state-imposed forced labour against the Uyghur population, unless importers can prove otherwise.

Among the newly blacklisted firms is one global textile giant, along with 25 of its subsidiaries.

These companies are implicated in forced labour practices within China’s cotton industry, according to US authorities.

Forced labour refers to any work or service that is performed under the threat of punishment, where someone has not volunteered or consented to do the work.

These companies have been added to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List.

This blocks the import of goods associated with what the US describes as China’s systemic human rights violations and genocide in the Xinjiang Autonomous Uyghur Region.

US officials accuse Chinese authorities of detaining Uyghurs and other minority groups in internment camps, which is a claim China denies.

144 companies have been added to the entity list since the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act was enacted in December 2021.

Russia has called this move hypocritical, defending China by pointing to the US government’s use of prison labour in response to the recent fires in California.

By banning imports from these firms, the US aims to hold companies accountable for their supply chain practices, ensuring that goods entering the country are free from forced labour.

This emphasises the importance of ethical sourcing and the need for companies to uphold human rights standards across their operations.