US House Revives Bill to Ban Goods from China's Xinjiang

World

February 18th, 5:34pm

Asharq Al-Awsat

The US Capitol in Washington, US. Reuters file photo

The US House of Representatives on Thursday reintroduced a bipartisan bill that would ban imports from China's Xinjiang region unless it is certified they are not produced with forced labor, and allow further sanctions against Chinese officials responsible for abuses against Muslims. The updated version of legislation that passed the House 406-3 in the previous Congress in September is similar to a Senate version that was reintroduced last month, having been held up in the previous session, Reuters reported. The House bill would authorize the US president to apply sanctions against anyone responsible for labor trafficking of minority Uighurs or other Muslims in Xinjiang, a leading producer of cotton and cotton products. It would also require financial disclosures by listed US companies about engagement with Chinese firms and entities engaged in abuses, a provision not included in the Senate version. "We have watched in horror as the Chinese government first created, and then expanded a system of extrajudicial mass internment camps targeting Uighurs and Muslim minorities," said Democratic Representative Jim McGovern in reintroducing the bill. He charged that the Xinjiang economy was "built upon a foundation of forced labor and repression." "Many US, international, and Chinese corporations are complicit in the exploitation of forced labor and these products continue to make their way into global supply chains and our country. It is long past time for the Congress to act," he said. A UN panel said in 2018 that it had received credible reports that at least 1 million Muslims had been detained in camps in Xinjiang.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2813926/us-house-revives-bill-ban-goods-chinas-xinjiang