In an effort to eradicate products created using the forced labor of Uyghur minorities from the U.S. supply chain, the United States on Tuesday (September 26, 2023) barred imports from three additional Chinese enterprises.
According to a government posting, three new companies have been added to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, increasing the total number of companies on the list to 27. These companies are Xinjiang Tianmian Foundation Textile Co Ltd, Xinjiang Tianshan Wool Textile Co. Ltd, and Xinjiang Zhongtai Group Co. Ltd.
The three companies were flagged due to their dealings with Uyghur minorities and other oppressed groups, according to a statement from the US Department of Homeland Security.
“We do not tolerate companies that use forced labor, that abuse the human rights of individuals in order to make a profit,” Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said in the statement.
The three companies were designated for working with the government of Xinjiang to recruit and transport, harbor or use the forced labor of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, or members of other persecuted groups out of the region, the United States said.
According to the statement, Xinjiang Tianmian Foundation Textile Co manufactures yarn and other textile items. PVC and other textile, chemical, and building materials are produced and sold by Xinjiang Zhongtai Group Co. Clothing made of wool and cashmere is available from Xinjiang Tianshan Wool Textile Co. Based in Xinjiang, all three are.
A law from 2021 called the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List (UFLPA) forbids the importation of goods made in Xinjiang or by businesses on the list into the US unless the importer can demonstrate that they weren’t made with forced labor.
U.S. officials believe Chinese authorities have established labor camps for Uyghurs and other Muslim minority groups in China’s western Xinjiang region. Beijing denies any abuses.
Later on Tuesday (September 26, 2023), the State Department revised its business advice about the Xingjiang supply chain to highlight China’s “ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang and the evidence of widespread use of forced labor there.”
It emphasized the necessity for companies to exercise due diligence, which includes detecting, evaluating, and responding to dangers to employees’ human rights and forced labor.
“There are potentially thousands of China-based companies and entities complicit in slave labor,” Rubio said in a statement. “The slow pace emboldens those profiting from slave labor.”
In August, two Chinese firms who were added to the list had their products blacklisted by the United States.
