U.S. Senate approves bill banning all products from China’s Xinjiang
On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate approved legislation to ban imports from China’s Xinjiang. Republican Senator Marco Rubio introduced the legislation along with Democrat Jeff Merkley. He called for the House to quickly act. This is the latest attempt by Washington to punish Beijing over what U.S. officials call a continuing genocide against Uyghurs.
“As the Chinese Communist Party is committing egregious human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities, including genocide and crimes against humanity, there is no excuse to turn a blind eye. We must instead do everything in our power to stop them.” Rubio said.
Marco Rubio
The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act would create a “rebuttable assumption” that goods made in Xinjiang with forced labor are prohibited under the 1930 Tariff Act unless otherwise certified.
The bipartisan measure was passed unanimously.
The bill, as written, would shift the burden of proof to importers.
I’ve never heard anything more laughable when the US says it will protect human rights around the world & accuses China of “genocide” & “crimes against humanity” in Xinjiang. What a joke!
Lijian Zhao 赵立坚
Before the bill can be sent to President Joe Biden for him to sign, it must pass the House of Representatives. It wasn’t immediately clear when this might occur.
Rubio stated in a statement that “we will not turn our blind eyes to the CCP’s ongoing crimes against humanity” and that corporations will not be allowed to profit from these horrific abuses.
These abuses should not be profited by American corporations. Merkley stated that no American consumer should inadvertently purchase products made from slave labor.
Both Republican and Democratic aides stated that they expect the measure to get strong support from the House. This is despite the fact that the House approved a similar measure almost unanimously last year.
This bill would go far beyond the existing steps taken to protect U.S. supply chain security in the face of allegations that rights abuses have been committed in China. It would include existing bans on Xinjiang tomato, cotton, and some solar products.
The Biden administration on Tuesday sent an advisory to businesses warning them that they could be violating U.S. Law if their operations are connected even indirectly with surveillance networks in Xinjiang.
Researchers, rights groups, former residents, and some Western officials claim that Xinjiang authorities facilitate forced labor by holding around a million Uyghurs, and other primarily Muslim minorities, since 2016.