US authorities have added three more textile manufacturers to the list of Chinese companies banned on grounds of Uyghur slave labor. The number of Chinese companies on the list has reached 78.
In a statement made by the US Department of Homeland Security on October 31, it was stated that goods produced by Esquel Group, Guangdong Esquel Textile Co., Ltd. and Turpan Esquel Textile Co. were added to the blacklist and can no longer be imported into the US. With these, the total number of companies on this list increased to 78.
The statement indicated that Esquel Group is based in Hong Kong and Guangdong Esquel Textile is based in Guangdong province. Turpan Esquel Textile is located in East Turkestan, an open-air prison for Uyghurs.
“POVERTY ALLEVIATION” PRETEXT
The blacklisting is based on the companies’ role in the “ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other religious and ethnic minority groups” in the Uyghur region. These companies are alleged to have used forced labor programs run by the Chinese government under the pretext of “poverty alleviation”.
Beijing argues that the labor programs are voluntary, aimed at training Uyghurs in vocational skills, but Uyghurs, outside observers, and the US government say they are thinly veiled slave-labor operations. In 2021, the US recognized China’s treatment of Uyghurs as “genocide”.
CHINESE BRANDS SELL PRODUCTS TAINTED BY SLAVERY
All three blacklisted firms are accused of supplying cotton harvested by Uyghurs in slave labor. Cotton is one of the most commonly cited products for forced labor, and cheap Chinese fast-fashion stores such as Temu and Shein have been accused of selling slavery-stained clothing.
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