U.S. Steps Up Pressure on Businesses Over Forced Labor in China
By Yuka Hayashi, 8/9/21, Wall St. Journal

U.S. lawmakers & Biden admin officials are stepping up
pressure on American businesses to stop imports from the
Western Chinese region of Xinjiang as Beijing’s alleged
use of forced labor emerges as a top item on their
bilateral trade agenda.

Western officials say the Chinese govt uses forced labor
of Uyghur and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang, the
world’s leading producer of cotton and raw materials used
in solar panels. Beijing strongly denies the claim.

Imports of cotton & tomato products have already been
effectively banned since January, and penalties on
purchases of some solar materials were implemented in June.

Tougher restrictions are afoot. Congress is expected to
approve legislation later this year that would prohibit
imports of all products from Xinjiang unless the importer
can prove their items are free of forced labor—a high bar.

The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act passed the Senate
by unanimous consent last month and is awaiting approval
by the House, which passed a similar bill by a wide
bipartisan vote last year.

The legislation would also increase resources for the
Customs & Border Protection, whose responsibility as the
forced labor cop has suddenly grown. The CBP has detained
967 shipments in forced labor cases in the current fiscal
year from October, mostly linked to the Xinjiang cotton
bans. That number is roughly triple the cases in all of
the previous year.

“The legislation would substantially enhance enforcement
by the CBP,” said Scott Nova, executive director of Worker
Rights Consortium, a nonprofit, independent labor-rights
monitoring group partly funded by universities. “That
has significant implications for companies.”

The Biden admin is conducting a broad review of trade
policy toward China. But even before articulating the new
plan, officials have made clear in recent weeks that
confronting Beijing over its forced labor record is a
key component of their strategy.

In guidance for businesses issued last month, the State
Dept & other U.S. agencies highlighted forced-labor risks
in supply chains linked to Xinjiang, urging U.S. businesses
to leave the region.

“Given the severity & extent of these abuses, businesses &
individuals that do not exit supply chains, ventures,
and/or investments connected to Xinjiang could run a high
risk of violating U.S. law,” the agencies said in the
Xinjiang Supply Chain Business Advisory.

It listed a wide range of industries as having heightened
human-rights concerns, incl. agriculture, food processing,
cellphones and toys, in addition to cotton and renewable-
energy products.

Katherine Tai, the U.S. Trade Rep, said the guidance demon-
strated the administration’s commitment to ending forced
labor, especially in global supply chains. “Our worker-
centered trade policy will champion workers’ rights and
address unfair competition, especially when it is based
on human exploitation,” she said.

Beijing says there is no forced labor in Xinjiang.

“Xinjiang affairs are purely China’s internal affairs.
The U.S. is in no position and has no right to interfere,”
said Liu Pengyu, a Chinese embassy spokesman in Washington.
“The U.S. fabricates lies and uses human rights as a cover
to recklessly and hegemonically suppress Xinjiang’s
industrial development.”

Industry reps & trade lawyers say importers are rushing
to move out of Xinjiang in anticipation of the Uyghur
forced-labor legislation, particularly in the solar
industry, which has relied heavily on polysilicon, a
solar panel component, from the region.

“We've been very public in pushing companies to move out
of Xinjiang to areas where all products coming into the
U.S. can be independently audited by third parties,” said
John Smirnow, general counsel & VP of market strategy for
Solar Energy Industries Assn. The trade group has issued a
protocol to help companies trace their supply chains, &
its 280 member companies have signed a pledge against
forced labor, he said.

Underscoring the significance of the legislation for
importers, industry groups such as SEIA and the American
Apparel & Footwear Assn have lobbied Congress to influence
its outcome, according to congressional lobbying data.

While importers & trade lawyers expect the legislation to
pass with key provisions approved by the Senate intact,
House lawmakers may try to add a few tougher conditions,
including public disclosure to the Securities and Exchange
Commission of any engagement with a Xinjiang entity and
shortening the implementation period for the law.

Steve Lamar, president & CEO of the AAFA, said the group is
working with Congress to seek legislation that provides for
“smart, effective enforcement” that treats companies as
“partners in our combined efforts to thwart forced labor.”

Momentum is building in Congress to further press Beijing
over the forced labor issue. A House panel passed legislation
last month that labels Beijing’s treatment of the Uyghurs
as “genocide” and prohibits the importation of goods made
“wholly or in part” in Xinjiang or by people working elsewhere
in China thru the Xinjiang govt worker-placement programs.

A bipartisan congressional commission led by Sen. Jeff Merkley
(D., Ore.) has even expressed concerns about the endorsement
by NBA players of Chinese sportswear companies known to use
Xinjiang cotton, saying the players should urge the companies
to stop the practice or end their contracts.

The U.S. has pushed allies to join in its efforts to increase
pressure on China over the alleged human-rights abuse in
Xinjiang, and the European Union, Canada and the U.K. have
taken steps to condemn Beijing.

Virginia Newman, a Miller & Chevalier trade lawyer, says these
actions, including the new legislation, could invite counter-
measures against the U.S. from China, eventually leading to a
decoupling of the two economies. “It’s probably going to affect
more people than the industry currently realizes,” she said.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-steps-up-pressure-on-businesses-over-forced-labor-in-china-11628501400

On Friday, August 13, 2021 at 12:11:29 AM UTC-7, David P. wrote:
> U.S. Steps Up Pressure on Businesses Over Forced Labor in China
> By Yuka Hayashi, 8/9/21, Wall St. Journal
>
> U.S. lawmakers & Biden admin officials are stepping up
> pressure on American businesses to stop imports from the
> Western Chinese region of Xinjiang as Beijing’s alleged
> use of forced labor emerges as a top item on their
> bilateral trade agenda.
>
> Western officials say the Chinese govt uses forced labor
> of Uyghur and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang, the
> world’s leading producer of cotton and raw materials used
> in solar panels. Beijing strongly denies the claim.
>
> Imports of cotton & tomato products have already been
> effectively banned since January, and penalties on
> purchases of some solar materials were implemented in June.
>
> Tougher restrictions are afoot. Congress is expected to
> approve legislation later this year that would prohibit
> imports of all products from Xinjiang unless the importer
> can prove their items are free of forced labor—a high bar.
>
> The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act passed the Senate
> by unanimous consent last month and is awaiting approval
> by the House, which passed a similar bill by a wide
> bipartisan vote last year.
>
> The legislation would also increase resources for the
> Customs & Border Protection, whose responsibility as the
> forced labor cop has suddenly grown. The CBP has detained
> 967 shipments in forced labor cases in the current fiscal
> year from October, mostly linked to the Xinjiang cotton
> bans. That number is roughly triple the cases in all of
> the previous year.
>
> “The legislation would substantially enhance enforcement
> by the CBP,” said Scott Nova, executive director of Worker
> Rights Consortium, a nonprofit, independent labor-rights
> monitoring group partly funded by universities. “That
> has significant implications for companies.”
>
> The Biden admin is conducting a broad review of trade
> policy toward China. But even before articulating the new
> plan, officials have made clear in recent weeks that
> confronting Beijing over its forced labor record is a
> key component of their strategy.
>
> In guidance for businesses issued last month, the State
> Dept & other U.S. agencies highlighted forced-labor risks
> in supply chains linked to Xinjiang, urging U.S. businesses
> to leave the region.
>
> “Given the severity & extent of these abuses, businesses &
> individuals that do not exit supply chains, ventures,
> and/or investments connected to Xinjiang could run a high
> risk of violating U.S. law,” the agencies said in the
> Xinjiang Supply Chain Business Advisory.
>
> It listed a wide range of industries as having heightened
> human-rights concerns, incl. agriculture, food processing,
> cellphones and toys, in addition to cotton and renewable-
> energy products.
>
> Katherine Tai, the U.S. Trade Rep, said the guidance demon-
> strated the administration’s commitment to ending forced
> labor, especially in global supply chains. “Our worker-
> centered trade policy will champion workers’ rights and
> address unfair competition, especially when it is based
> on human exploitation,” she said.
>
> Beijing says there is no forced labor in Xinjiang.
>
> “Xinjiang affairs are purely China’s internal affairs.
> The U.S. is in no position and has no right to interfere,”
> said Liu Pengyu, a Chinese embassy spokesman in Washington.
> “The U.S. fabricates lies and uses human rights as a cover
> to recklessly and hegemonically suppress Xinjiang’s
> industrial development.”
>
> Industry reps & trade lawyers say importers are rushing
> to move out of Xinjiang in anticipation of the Uyghur
> forced-labor legislation, particularly in the solar
> industry, which has relied heavily on polysilicon, a
> solar panel component, from the region.
>
> “We've been very public in pushing companies to move out
> of Xinjiang to areas where all products coming into the
> U.S. can be independently audited by third parties,” said
> John Smirnow, general counsel & VP of market strategy for
> Solar Energy Industries Assn. The trade group has issued a
> protocol to help companies trace their supply chains, &
> its 280 member companies have signed a pledge against
> forced labor, he said.
>
> Underscoring the significance of the legislation for
> importers, industry groups such as SEIA and the American
> Apparel & Footwear Assn have lobbied Congress to influence
> its outcome, according to congressional lobbying data.
>
> While importers & trade lawyers expect the legislation to
> pass with key provisions approved by the Senate intact,
> House lawmakers may try to add a few tougher conditions,
> including public disclosure to the Securities and Exchange
> Commission of any engagement with a Xinjiang entity and
> shortening the implementation period for the law.
>
> Steve Lamar, president & CEO of the AAFA, said the group is
> working with Congress to seek legislation that provides for
> “smart, effective enforcement” that treats companies as
> “partners in our combined efforts to thwart forced labor.”
>
> Momentum is building in Congress to further press Beijing
> over the forced labor issue. A House panel passed legislation
> last month that labels Beijing’s treatment of the Uyghurs
> as “genocide” and prohibits the importation of goods made
> “wholly or in part” in Xinjiang or by people working elsewhere
> in China thru the Xinjiang govt worker-placement programs.
>
> A bipartisan congressional commission led by Sen. Jeff Merkley
> (D., Ore.) has even expressed concerns about the endorsement
> by NBA players of Chinese sportswear companies known to use
> Xinjiang cotton, saying the players should urge the companies
> to stop the practice or end their contracts.
>
> The U.S. has pushed allies to join in its efforts to increase
> pressure on China over the alleged human-rights abuse in
> Xinjiang, and the European Union, Canada and the U.K. have
> taken steps to condemn Beijing.
>
> Virginia Newman, a Miller & Chevalier trade lawyer, says these
> actions, including the new legislation, could invite counter-
> measures against the U.S. from China, eventually leading to a
> decoupling of the two economies. “It’s probably going to affect
> more people than the industry currently realizes,” she said.
>
> https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-steps-up-pressure-on-businesses-over-forced-labor-in-china-11628501400

We are only fooling ourselves... and paying more for common items from overseas...
Surely, the cotton from Xinjiang can be sold to other countries and made into clothing....
and sold inside the U.S. China has not dump bales of unsold cotton anywhere...