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The US Xinjiang related act "Uyghur forced labor Prevention Act" came into effect on June 21. It was signed by US President Biden in November last year. The bill will prohibit the United States from importing Xinjiang products unless the enterprise can provide "clear and convincing evidence" that the products are not manufactured by the so-called "forced labor".
Response from Ministry of foreign affairs, Ministry of Commerce and China Textile Federation
Photo source: Hua Chunying's Twitter screenshot
Response of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs:
The US Xinjiang related act "Uyghur forced labor Prevention Act" came into effect on June 21. It was signed by US President Biden in November last year. The bill will prohibit the United States from importing Xinjiang products unless the enterprise can provide "clear and convincing evidence" that the products are not manufactured by the so-called "forced labor". In other words, this bill requires enterprises to "prove their innocence", otherwise it is presumed that all products manufactured in Xinjiang involve "forced labor".
Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at the foreign ministry's regular press conference on the 21st that the so-called "forced labor" in Xinjiang was originally a big lie concocted by Anti China forces to smear China. It is completely opposite to the fact that the large-scale mechanized production of cotton and other industries in Xinjiang and the effective protection of the labor rights and interests of the people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang. The US side formulated and implemented the "Uyghur forced labor prevention law" on the basis of lies, and imposed sanctions on relevant entities and individuals in Xinjiang. This is not only the continuation of lies, but also the escalation of the US side's crackdown on China under the pretext of human rights. It is also an empirical evidence that the United States wantonly destroys international economic and trade rules and damages the stability of the international industrial chain and supply chain.
Wang Wenbin said that the United States is trying to create forced unemployment in Xinjiang in the form of so-called laws and to promote "decoupling" with China in the world. This has fully exposed the hegemonic essence of the United States in destroying human rights under the banner of human rights and rules under the banner of rules. China strongly condemns and resolutely opposes this, and will take effective measures to firmly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises and citizens. The US side goes against the trend of the times and is doomed to fail.
Response of the Ministry of Commerce:
A spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce said on June 21, US Eastern time, on the basis of the so-called Xinjiang related act of the US Congress, the US Customs and Border Protection Bureau presumed all products produced in Xinjiang as so-called "forced labor" products, and prohibited the import of any products related to Xinjiang. In the name of "human rights", the United States is practicing unilateralism, protectionism and bullying, seriously undermining market principles and violating WTO rules. The US approach is a typical economic coercion, which seriously damages the vital interests of Chinese and American enterprises and consumers, is not conducive to the stability of the global industrial chain and supply chain, is not conducive to the alleviation of global inflation, and is not conducive to the recovery of the world economy. China firmly opposes this.
The spokesman pointed out that in fact, Chinese laws explicitly prohibit forced labor. The people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang are completely free and equal in employment, their labor rights and interests are effectively protected according to law, and their living standards are constantly improving. From 2014 to 2021, the disposable income of urban residents in Xinjiang will increase from 23000 yuan to 37600 yuan; The disposable income of rural residents increased from about 8700 yuan to 15600 yuan. By the end of 2020, more than 3.06 million rural poor people in Xinjiang will have been lifted out of poverty, 3666 poverty-stricken villages will have been pulled out, and 35 poverty-stricken counties will have their caps removed. The problem of absolute poverty will have been solved historically. At present, in the process of cotton planting in Xinjiang, the comprehensive mechanization level in most areas exceeds 98%. The so-called "forced labor" in Xinjiang is fundamentally inconsistent with the facts. The United States has implemented a comprehensive ban on products related to Xinjiang on the ground of "forced labor". Its essence is to deprive the people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang of their right to work and development.
The spokesman stressed: facts fully show that the real intention of the US side is to smear China's image, interfere in China's internal affairs, curb China's development, and undermine Xinjiang's prosperity and stability. The US side should immediately stop political manipulation and distorted attacks, immediately stop infringing on the rights and interests of the people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang, and immediately revoke all sanctions and suppression measures related to Xinjiang. The Chinese side will take necessary actions to resolutely safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests and the legitimate rights and interests of the people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang. Under the current situation of high inflation and low growth in the world economy, we hope that the US side will do more things conducive to the stability of the industrial chain and supply chain and economic recovery, so as to create conditions for deepening economic and trade cooperation.
The cotton harvester collects new cotton in a cotton field in Xinjiang. (photo / Xinhua News Agency)
China Textile Federation responded:
A relevant person in charge of the China Textile Industry Federation (hereinafter referred to as "China Textile Federation") said on June 22 that on June 21, US Eastern time, the US Customs and Border Protection Bureau, based on the so-called "Xinjiang related act", presumed all products produced in Xinjiang, China as so-called "forced labor" products, and prohibited the import of any products related to Xinjiang. The so-called "Uyghur forced labor Prevention Act" formulated and implemented by the United States has undermined fair, just and objective international economic and trade rules, seriously and grossly damaged the overall interests of China's textile industry, and will also endanger the normal order of the global textile industry and damage the rights and interests of global consumers. The China Textile Federation strongly opposes it.
The responsible person of China Textile Federation said that Xinjiang cotton is a high-quality natural fiber material recognized by the global industry, accounting for about 20% of the total global cotton output. It is an important raw material guarantee for the healthy and sustainable development of China's and even the global textile industry. In essence, the US government's crackdown on Xinjiang cotton and its products is not only a malicious crackdown on China's textile industry chain, but also a serious threat to the safety and stability of the global textile industry chain and supply chain. It is also damaging the vital interests of workers in the global textile industry. It is actually violating the "labor rights" of tens of millions of textile industry workers in the name of "human rights".
The responsible person of China Textile Federation pointed out that there is no so-called "forced labor" in China's textile industry, including Xinjiang textile. Chinese laws have always explicitly prohibited forced labor, and Chinese textile enterprises have always strictly complied with relevant national laws and regulations. Since 2005, China Textile Federation has always been committed to promoting the construction of social responsibility in the textile industry. As a labor-intensive industry, the protection of workers' rights and interests has always been the core content of the social responsibility system construction of China's textile industry. The Xinjiang Textile Industry Association issued the social responsibility report of Xinjiang cotton textile industry in January 2021, which fully explains that there is no so-called "forced labor" in the textile industry in Xinjiang with detailed data and materials. At present, in the process of cotton planting in Xinjiang, the comprehensive mechanization level in most areas exceeds 98%, and the so-called "forced labor" in Xinjiang cotton is fundamentally inconsistent with the facts.
The relevant responsible person of China Textile Federation said that China is the world's largest producer, consumer and exporter of textiles and clothing, the country with the most complete textile industry chain and the most complete categories, the core force supporting the smooth operation of the world textile industry system, and the important consumer market on which international brands depend. We firmly believe that China's textile industry will be united. With the support of Chinese government departments, we will effectively respond to various risks and challenges, actively explore domestic and international markets, jointly safeguard the safety of China's textile industry chain, and promote the high-quality development of "science, technology, fashion and green" with responsible industrial practices.
Voice of foreign media:
According to the New York Times, thousands of global companies rely on Xinjiang in their supply chain. If the United States fully implements the act, many products may be blocked at the border. The United States politicized normal economic and trade cooperation, artificially interfered with the division of labor and cooperation in the normal industrial chain and supply chain, and wantonly suppressed the development of Chinese enterprises and industries. This typical economic coercion seriously undermined the market principle and violated the rules of the world trade organization. The United States deliberately creates and spreads lies about forced labor in Xinjiang in order to exclude China from the global supply chain and industrial chain. This draconian law involving Xinjiang manipulated by US politicians will eventually harm the interests of us enterprises and the public.
The Wall Street Journal reported that because the law requires enterprises to "prove their innocence", some American enterprises in China said that they were worried that the relevant provisions might lead to logistics disruption and increase compliance costs, and the regulatory burden would "seriously" fall on small and medium-sized enterprises.
According to politico, a US political news website, many US importers are worried about the bill. The implementation of the bill may also add fuel to the inflation problem faced by the United States and other countries. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Ji Kaiwen, former president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, said that with some enterprises moving their supply channels out of China, the implementation of this bill may increase the pressure of global supply chain and inflation. This is definitely not good news for the American people who are currently suffering from an inflation rate of 8.6%.
Post time: Jun-22-2022