Uyghur Forced Labor Bill Passes in Senate Committee
This year's version of the Senate Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, harmonized with the House version, passed the Senate Foreign Relations Committee June 24 by a unanimous voice vote. The bill, sponsored by Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., would create a rebuttable presumption that all goods produced in China's Xinjiang region were made with forced labor. Before the vote, Rubio said that there are 1,500 companies located in or near more than 100 mass detention facilities. "This is slavery. As simple as that. American companies argue that their supply chains are clean. What this bill says is: 'Prove it. Especially if it's coming out of Xinjiang.'" Rubio said he expects it will be impossible to prove there's no forced labor involved in the goods in most cases.
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Several Republicans offered amendments that explicitly banned solar panels and electric vehicles made in Xinjiang, which were rejected. Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., said, "This is not the debate on the climate agenda! The bill's drafted for all goods."
Rubio and Merkley celebrated the committee vote, with Rubio calling it "a significant step in ensuring Beijing is not profiting from its genocide and crimes against Uyghurs and other ethnic groups in Xinjiang."