Most Goods Denied Entry Under UFLPA Aren't Made With Forced Labor, Expert Says
Many goods denied entry into the U.S. under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act are not actually goods made with forced labor, but that doesn't stop UFLPA-detained goods from being stigmatized as such, said John Foote of Kelley Drye in a Jan. 19 blog post.
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That way of thinking surfaced at a recent hearing of the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Oversight hearing (see 2401110073), Foote said. During the hearing, Eric Choy, executive director of CBP's Trade Remedy Law Enforcement Directorate, said that while a shipment can be detained, "CBP does not have specific standing to seize the shipment" under UFLPA. That means that anytime during that process the importer may reexport the shipment, Choy said.
Rep. Glenn Ivey, D-Md., responded that allowing importers to reexport the shipment is "an insufficient way" to sanction forced labor. Ivey went further and asked if giving importers the ability to reexport allowed them to profit from forced labor; Choy said yes.
That response shows "deeply flawed" logic, Foote said. Goods denied entry into the U.S. under UFLPA aren't made with forced labor, "at least not always, and probably not even usually," he continued.
"You can’t presume that forced labor is ubiquitous in a region, AND pretend that presumption is rebuttable but actually design it to be irrebuttable, AND presume that imported goods contain content from that region, AND disregard scientific proof that those goods don’t contain content from the region, AND refuse to disclose the reasons of your decision AND then proclaim that the losing party is a slave labor profiteer," Foote said.
CBP didn't respond to our request for comment.