U.S. officials say Muslims from China’s Uighur community are being held in the area and forced to work. Although China has always said it did not forcibly detain Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang province. However, the United States has already banned the import of yarn and tomatoes from the region.
The United States has imposed the ban in light of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. The ban took effect on Tuesday.
In a statement, U.S. lawmakers said the law would send a clear message: The United States will not condone the Chinese Communist Party’s heinous crimes against slavery and humanity. Members of the Republican and Democratic parties enacted the law simultaneously.
According to the US Congress, China has detained more than one million Uighur and other Muslims in Xinjiang province since April 2016. They believe that millions of Uyghur Muslims are being forced to work in Xinjiang province for very low wages or without pay. This is being done under the guise of boasting about poverty alleviation and industrial assistance.
Although the Chinese authorities have denied the allegations, leaked documents and documents obtained by the BBC show that there have been numerous instances of gang rape, sexual violence and torture in Xinjiang.
Asked by the BBC what would happen as a result of the ban, Scott Nova, executive director of the Independent Workers’ Rights Consortium in Washington, D.C., said most of the products produced in Xinjiang would no longer be on the market. As a result, it is hoped that the ban will bear fruit, and that slavery will be greatly reduced.
