Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – New stage trade war The United States (US) and China seem to be starting again. Despite a phase I trade peace agreement signed in January, a new attack on Chinese commodities is now being launched again by the US.
This time US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will block imports of cotton and tomato products from China’s Xinjiang region in western China. Not only that, its derivative products including cotton yarn, textiles, apparel and tomato paste, and other products will also be prohibited from entering.
This was done because of allegations the product was produced by forced labor by China to Uighur Muslims in the province. The regulation originally took effect on September 8, but has now been pushed back to next week.
The CBP spokesman said the rule was called the “Detention Release Order”. In the US it may withhold shipments under the pretext of laws combating human trafficking, child labor, and other human rights violations.
The Trump administration has previously increased pressure on China over its treatment of Xinjiang’s Uighur Muslims. The United Nations (UN) says it has credible reports that 1 million Muslims have been detained in camps in the region, where they have been assigned to work.
China denies the persecution of Uighur Muslims and says some of the camps are vocational training centers. According to China it is necessary for the country to fight extremism.
“We have evidence … that there is a risk of forced labor in the supply chain associated with the cotton and tomato textiles coming out of Xinjiang. We will continue to carry out our investigations to fill that gap,” CBP Assistant Commissioner Brenda Smith told Reuters. quoted Wednesday (9/9/2020).
US law requires the agency to withhold shipments if forced labor is suspected. Even though it’s from a non-governmental organization.
The ban could have far-reaching implications for US retailers and apparel manufacturers, as well as food producers. China produces about 20% of the world’s cotton and most of it comes from Xinjiang.
In March, US lawmakers proposed a law that would effectively assume that all goods produced in Xinjiang are made by forced labor. It even requires certification if you want to pass into the US.
In July, Washington issued a warning saying companies doing business in Xinjiang using labor from the region could be exposed to reputational, economic and legal risks.
The State Department also said it had sent letters to leading American companies including Walmart Inc, Apple Inc and Amazon.com Inc warning them of the risks faced from maintaining supply chains related to human rights abuses in the Xinjiang region.
In the draft announcement seen by Reuters, CBP said it has identified indicators of forced labor involving the supply chains of cotton, textiles and tomatoes. These include debt bondage, precarious movement, isolation, intimidation and threats, wage cuts, abusive working and living conditions.
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